Just noticing once again that this is the month of February. February comes right before March, obviously, but two months back to back are sort of important to me, and uh, March reminds me that uh, this coming March, the Lord hadn't come first, that'll make seven years that I've known the Lord Jesus as my Savior, and uh, this month in February makes five years that I've been in full-time work here at, uh, the chapel. Five years, and, uh, we praise the Lord for that. We first came to the, I first came to the chapel in September of nineteen seventy nine, and in February went into full-time service for the Lord here, and thereabouts. And so I've been thinking this past year and praying about what the Lord would have me to do, and, uh, come to the conclusion that I think I want to stay another year. And I don't say that lightly because this has been a real year of decision for me this past year. I've really sought the Lord's will about what to do and where he would have me to be. It doesn't bother me that we have, uh, only a few here in fellowship because I've often said I'm not looking for the big place or place just because it's big. And I'm reminded once again of the, uh, Baptist preacher who was asked, uh, about his bus ministry, if he was going to get out of the bus ministry because gas, the price of gas had gone so high. And he replied, well, we didn't get in the bus ministry because gas was cheap. And you see, it's the same way here at the chapel. I didn't, uh, serve the Lord here because it was a big place. That's not why I came. I served the Lord here for the same reason anybody should serve the Lord anywhere, because that's where the Lord's put you, and you feel like you're in the will of God, and as long as you know you're in God's will, it doesn't matter about the other thing. Now, I'm not saying that we shouldn't seek to grow or get bigger or wouldn't like to see more people in fellowship here or any of that, but I'm just saying that I believe, as far as I can tell right now, the Lord would like for me to stay here for another year. And in this next year, I'm going to try to fulfill what I think the scripture says that the role of a pastor or a teacher or an evangelist is, according to Ephesians in chapter four, and that is to equip the saints, to perfect the saints, and uh, to equip them to be able to do the ministry. And so, uh, coming up, we're going to have some concentrated effort in three primary areas, and that is the areas of Bible study, soul winning, and prayer. And uh, we're going to be concentrating heavily this coming year on those three areas. That is on our personal, I don't know of any Christian that I, that I know who's a Christian who wouldn't like to know how to study the Bible or to be able to study it better. I think that's something that every Christian desires. I don't know any Christian who wouldn't like to be able to pray more or have a more, a deeper prayer life, personal prayer life. And then I don't know of anybody who's a Christian who wouldn't like to be able to more effectively preach the gospel to others and see souls won to the Lord Jesus Christ. And I think those are three very important areas of our Christian life, and those are three areas that this year, in the will of the Lord, we're going to concentrate on, on, uh, equipping ourselves in. Now let's come to the book of Job. In the book of Job, in chapter one and verse six: Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them. And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? And then Satan answered the Lord and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and upright man, one that feareth God and escheweth evil? Then Satan answered the Lord and said, Doth Job fear God for naught? Hast not thou made an hedge about him and about his house and about all that he hath on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. But put forth thine hand now and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face. And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power, only upon himself put forth, put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord. Now, notice on down in chapter two and the first verse. Again, there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the Lord. And the Lord said unto Satan, from whence comest thou? And Satan answered the Lord and said, from going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God and escheweth evil? And still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movest me against him to destroy him without cause. And Satan answered the Lord and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life, but put forth thine hand now and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face. And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, he's in thine hand, but save his life. So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown. Now let's look to the Lord in a word of prayer. Father, we ask thy help now that we might be able to see the truth of the word of God. Father, I ask thy help that I might be able to preach the message that I believe that thou would have me to preach, and that we might receive the message in the way that thou would have us to receive it. We just commit this time into thee of thanksgiving in our Lord Jesus' name. Amen. Now, the interesting thing about the man Job to me, one of the interesting things about him, is that obviously Job didn't know what was going on in the conversation between the Lord and Satan. It would have been one thing if Job had have said, now, I see that God is testing me now. He's been talking to Satan. Satan has accused me of only serving God because I love him and because, or excuse me, because God has been good to me and, uh, only serving the Lord for what he gives me. And, uh, so I'm being tested now, and I realize that, and I'm going to have to do right and make sure I watch my step. But you see, he knew nothing about what was going on. And when all the calamities came upon his life, when his, uh, flocks, when his herds, when his children even were killed, he knew nothing about the conversation that was taking place between, uh, the Lord and Satan. All of this activity was behind the scenes. It was behind the scenes. And the scriptures show us, and Job in the Bible is, is probably the oldest book of the Bible. That is the setting of time that we have the man Job in, is is probably around one of the oldest times or one of the oldest books that's been, that we have in our Bible, and it dates very far back. And, uh, the interesting thing that I see here and that I want you to note is all of this activity that was going on behind the scenes and to which Job was completely unaware. But you see, there was a lot of activity going on in heaven. There came a day when the sons of God presented themselves unto the Lord, and Satan came among them and began this conversation with the Lord. Now, as far as the scripture reveals, he still has the ability to be able to do that. For when we look in the book of Revelation that reveals the future and what's going to happen, there we are told that the accuser of the brethren was cast down, but that's not happened yet. Satan still has the, uh, ability, he still has the right allowed by God, if we might say, to accuse the brethren and to go into the presence of God as far as we can tell from the scripture. And so there came this day, and and there was this angelic activity, there was the activity of the principalities and powers that are created, who came and presented themselves to God. And when you read the scripture, you notice we read in chapter one there, there was a day, and then in chapter 2 in verse one, and there was a day. It sounds almost like a regular thing. It sounds almost like periodically the sons of God, that is the created being, angels and whatever, come to present themselves before the Lord on a regular basis. And whenever they did, Satan came to and stuck his nose in there. Now I want you to turn to second Kings. Back up to second Kings. Second Kings in chapter six. Two Kings chapter six and verse eleven. It says that the heart of the king of Syria was sore trouble for this thing, that is, what had been taking place. The, uh, king of Syria was trying to get the king of Israel, but every time he tried to get him, somebody'd warned the king and of where they were and of what was going on, and so he wasn't able to get him. And so it says in verse eleven that the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing, and he called his servants and said unto them, will you not show me which of us is for the king of Israel? In other words, he said, hey, there must be a spy. It's got to be an inside job. Somebody's telling him every place I'm going. And one of his servants said, none, my lord, O king, but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber. He says, when you're laying in your bed there, or when in your private place in your house, there's a prophet over in Israel, and he's telling everything that's going on to the king. And he said, well, go and spy out where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, behold, he is in Dothan. Therefore sent he to their horses and chariots and a great host, and they came by night and compassed the city about. And when the servant of the man of God was risen early and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master, how shall we do? In other words, the servant wakes up in the morning, Elisha's servant, the prophet, and he looks out and hears all these armies surrounding the place. And so he goes back to Elisha and he says, how are we going to do, you know, how are we going to get out of this one? And in verse sixteen, Elisha says, fear not, for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. And, uh, it kind of reminds me, you know, the, the way that guy must have thought of the old TV program Get Smart. You know, they'd, they'd trap old Maxwell Smart, get him in a corner somewhere, and have him all tied up, and he'd say, would you believe that at this very moment, you know, the there's five thousand troops from the United States Army surrounding this place, and any minute they're about to break in? And the guy, of course, would say, I find that hard to believe, you know. Well, would you believe, you know, at this very moment, you know, there's the the the police force of the city of Los Angeles is about to surround. I find that hard to believe, and he'd keep on going until, uh, you know, it was obvious that he was lying. But, you know, he says, don't worry about it, servant. There's more that be with us than there are that be with them. And he's probably looking around, you know, thinking that the army had come in during the night when he's asleep or something, but he doesn't see anybody. And so Elisha prayed and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the Lord and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with the blindness, according to the word of Elisha. And so, uh, there were more with him than there were with the others. In other words, God had surrounded the place with, uh, the heavenly host to protect his servant, Elisha. Now, you think this is strange from reading it in the Bible, but this is an event that has happened in more modern times. There are people right now alive who can testify to divine protection that has taken place in the same way. I'm reminded of one missionary who was in the islands, uh, I believe in the South Pacific, and um, the chief of the tribe came, and they were going to kill him. And as they came up to the place, he saw them there out the window of his hut or wherever he was living. He looked and he saw all these headhunters coming, and they went so far, and they didn't go anymore. And so, of course, he knew that the Lord was protecting him, but he didn't know exactly why. And later on, through a series of events that, that came to take place, he, the uh, chief of the tribe got saved and trusted Lord as savior. And so the missionary asked him, how come that time that you had me surrounded, that you didn't attack? And he said, why, it was because of all those, those people that were surrounding the place. We couldn't get in. And he said, what people? The missionary hadn't seen anybody. Why all those, the ones that were, you know, all around the place that were protect- protecting the place, we just couldn't get in. And there have been countless times that, that events such as this had taken place and do take place, and I believe still God is able, when he desires, to do this type of thing. But what I want you to see is that unbeknown to the servant, and Elisha obviously knew this by faith, he prayed that the Lord would open the eyes of the young man and that he would see that there was more going on than he had at first realized. There was something going on behind the scenes. There was, there were, there were beings there that, uh, were there in this case for the protection of Elisha, but there was more than what met the eye. There was something taking place there. Now turn to Daniel in chapter ten. Chapter ten and verse eight. Now Daniel had seen a vision, and in verse eight he says, I was left alone and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me, for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength. Yet heard I the voice of his words, and when I heard the voice of his words, then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward the ground. And behold, an hand toward me, or, or excuse me, a hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands. And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright, for unto thee am I now sent. When he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling. Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days. But lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, and I remained there with the kings of Persia. Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days, and yet the vision is for many days. Now look down in verse eighteen. Then there came again and touched me one like the appearance of a man, and he strengthened me, and said, O man greatly beloved, fear not, peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong. And when he had spoken unto me, I was strengthened and said, Let my Lord speak, for thou hast strengthened me. Then said he, Knowest thou wherefore I come unto thee? And now will I return to fight with the prince of Persia, and when I'm gone forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come, but I will show thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth, and there is none that holdeth with me in these things but Michael, your prince. Now, what I want you to notice is that while Daniel was fasting and praying, twenty one days, Daniel had fasted and prayed. In verse two, he, he talks about the three weeks that he'd eat no bread or drank anything, and he fasted and prayed, and fasted and prayed, and the whole time he was fasting and praying for three weeks, this an- angel was trying to get to him, but he says that the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood him for those twenty one days, and finally Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help him, and there's the interpretation of what the word prince is, you see? He's not talking about princes on this earth, because he talks about Michael being a prince or an archangel. And so while Daniel was down fasting and praying and fasting and praying to the Lord, at the same time, the messenger from God, the angel, was trying to get through with the message, but there was a demonic principality or power that was withstanding him. Now, Daniel didn't know any of this was going on. All of this activity had taken place behind the scenes. And you see, he says, not only did the Prince of Persia withstand me, and and what we learned from this is that Satan has his men who seem to be, uh, just like, uh, in a battalion or in an army, a regiment of army or any other regiment of soldiers, and just like, uh, in different nations, you have people who are over different countries or different part of the countries, it seems that Satan has his men too. He can't be everywhere in once like God can. So he has those who are under him, his commanders, and his generals, and his colonels, and his majors, and his governors, and he's got people that are over each country, and then there are lesser beings under him. This is in the great, uh, sphere that is unseen to the present eye. And it brings us to mind again, you see, the, the words of the Apostle Paul, that we wrestle not against principalities and powers. Let's look at that in Ephesians chapter six. And I read all these verses that we've read in these passages of scripture because I want to, I want you to see something here, we'll see in just a minute. Now, Paul tells us in Ephesians six and verse ten, Brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles, that is the methods and the strategies of the devil. And in verse twelve, he says, we wrestle not against flesh and blood. He says, our real fight is not with the people that are here on this world. The real battle is taking place against principalities, powers, the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places, or wicked spirits who are in the heavenly places. Just like we read about the Prince of Persia and the Prince of Grecia, or Greece, and Persia today, I guess, would be Iran, is that right? And so, uh, those are two prominent countries that were named, but the prince that was over what we now call Iran and the prince that was over Grecia, or Greece, these were spiritual evil spirits in the heavenly realm, in the realm that we cannot see with our naked eye. We wrestle against these, uh, beings in the high places or in the heaven. Now, the thing that I want you to notice from this is that even while we sit in this room this morning, there are things that are going on in the heavenly sphere, in the realm that we can't see with our naked eye and with our natural eye. There are great events and activities and much activity taking place right now behind the scenes. Right now, there is much activity going on that we know nothing about with the naked eye. There's activity going on that we cannot see except by the eye of faith and looking to the word of God. We tend to get this idea that what's going on and everything that's happening is right here on this world or in this room or wherever we're at and where we're living. But that's only a very small part of the total scope of what is taking place. And you see, I believe that we as Christians especially need to have our eyes open. We need to have the prayer that Elisha prayed for that young man, uh, prayed for us. We need that prayer ourselves. We need to have our eyes open to what is going on. And you see, it's very vital that we do. I believe that our view of the world and our view of life itself will determine our actions. Now, you notice what I said. I didn't say that how life is or how the world is will determine our actions. No, they won't. It's obvious that they don't. It's obvious that among Christians, that how the reality of how the world is, is not the thing that determines their actions. It's your view, how you see the world and how you view life that will be the great determiner of how you act. In other words, your attitude is going to determine your actions. Now, you follow what I'm saying here? You see, there is this that, uh, A. W. Tozer one time wrote a chapter in a book called The World, Playground or Battleground? Battleground or Playground. Now you follow what I'm saying. If we, as Christians, just view the world as a playground, as much of the world does, then you see how that will determine our actions. That's what determines the actions of most people in the world. To most, the average man on the street, and sadly to say, to most Christians, whether they voice this philosophy or not, it's evident by our, their actions that to most people in the world today, the world is a playground. Now, that's especially true in the United States of America, where we don't have to live in the way that many people do as far as going out and working for our food with our own hands, like a farmer somebody has to do, or worrying about our day-to-day sustenance and involving all our time with that. No, the big thing in America is leisure time. We even adjust the clock so that we'll have more, uh, daylight savings time and more time when you get off work, and that's okay. But the thing that I'm saying is, by and large, especially in America, most people view the world as a playground. This is life. This is all there is to it. Let's live it. Let's have fun. Let's enjoy ourselves. And you see, that's normal for the person who isn't saved. But when that type of viewpoint begins to pervade the thinking of the Christian, we're in trouble. When the Christian forgets that this world is not a playground, but this world is a battleground, then we're in trouble, you see? Because just imagine for a moment that we all in this room right now were called to battle. The enemy's coming in, and we're all conscripted to go into the army and to fight. And so we, we all get our uniforms on, and we go out to fight the battle, and the enemy's there across the street, right across Dean Road. Here they come, they're charging in. And we all say, uh, all of a sudden Jerry Duke, he reaches in his back pocket and he says, now I've got a game of tiddlywinks here. Let's all sit down and have a game. And so we say, yeah, that sounds great. And everybody sits down, boy, I love this. And we're all sitting there playing with these tiddlywinks. And here come the troops charging in across the street. They're getting closer, they're getting closer, they're getting closer. You see, it sounds silly, doesn't it? It sounds foolish. And we say, oh, you'd never do that if somebody was there attacking. But you see, here's the thing. If we don't have our eyes open to the fact that this is a battleground, that there is a war going on, and that the battle is between the forces of evil and, uh, the forces of righteousness, and that we as Christians are called into this war. We've been given the armor. It's our responsibility to take up the armor, put the armor on, keep it on, and to stand fast with that armor that is on. But we need our eyes to be open. You see, if people go through this life and they think that this is all there is, you see what the problem becomes? They think that this is the great reality, when in fact it's not. This world is not the great reality. This world is only a temporary staging ground for the real reality that's going to come. God's going to destroy this world with fire, the, the, uh, Bible tells us. He's going to make a new heavens and a new earth. But beside all that, whatever takes place, the time that we are here on this earth is temporary. It's just a staging ground for what is to come. And so if we live our life thinking that all of this is all there is, then we've missed out. Our eyes haven't been open to the real reality of what is taking place. And this world is, and especially this country that we live in, is is dominated by the thought that this is just a playground. This is just a place to enjoy. This is just a place to have fun while we are here. But do you know that it's here in this life that God has given us that the great issues of life and death o- occur? God has given us this span of time, however much it is, and here, here is where the great issues of life will take place, and where the great issues of life are decided. That's why you'll find, do you know I find something that runs true in, in many of the cults and in the false teaching that is against and contrary to the Word of God? I find a dominating theme that runs true in most of those. I don't care which one you name. You can find the same truth basically in those, and that is that after this life is over, that's all that there is. That's all there is. That's all that there is. And you'll find that most of the major cults teach basically that same thing. They'll either teach that that's all that there is, and when you die, you're gone, so you might as well, uh, do whatever here. Now, some of them will vary the theme a little bit and say you ought to live for God here, because if you don't, then he's going to wipe you out. Uh, and then, on the other hand, you'll find some that teach everybody's going to be okay. You know, everybody's going to be all right, and God's going to allow everybody to go into heaven in some measure or another. But you see, all that is part of the enemy's plan to, to blind people to the real truth. Because if, if you think that this life is all that there is, and if you die, the most that can happen to you is you're wiped out of existence, then you might as well, most people say, live life however you want. Just live it up, eat, drink, and be merry, because tomorrow you die. But here in this life, the great issues of life are, are resolved. And this is the life, and right now, uh, even, even today, there are battles going on. Of course, the greatest battle, I guess, has ever been seen was there on the cross of Calvary. And there we see the Lord Jesus dying for the sin of the world. And of course, God veiled that in the darkness that surrounded it. But when he came out of that victory, uh, when before he died, before he gave his life up, he said, it is finished, it's accomplished, it is done. The work is done, just say. But now, today, I find there's a battle going on for the souls of men, and the enemy has seemed to pitch a last-ditch effort to do everything that he can to try to keep people, I believe, from being saved. And that's Satan's desire. Satan has no greater desire than to see you damned in hell for all eternity. That's the only thing he wants. He doesn't want to give you a good time. The only reason he wants to give you a good time is an ends to a means, that you'll forget about God and wipe God out of your thoughts and, uh, end up going to hell. But there is a battle going on today, and I find it's true with young people, and I find it's true with older people as well. And people need their eyes open to the fact. And you see, if you're not saved, the Bible says that Satan has blinded your mind. You don't know what's going on if you're not saved. That's why when somebody tries to talk to you about the gospel, that, uh, you think it sounds stupid or foolish. Why should I want to live like that? Why should I want to give up this or give up that? Why should I want to turn my life over to the Lord? I'm having a good time the way I am. Yeah, but you see, the Bible says that your eyes are blinded, that there's a veil drawn across your mind, and you can't comprehend the truth that there is more to life than what meets the eye, and that this life is where the great issues are decided that will determine whether you'll spend eternity in heaven or in hell. And God has given you this time that is here for that purpose. And it's not until you believe the gospel that the veil is removed, and then you can see that there's so much more to life, and that this is not the only reality that there is. But that veil will never be removed until you trust Christ as Savior. The god of this world, Satan, has blinded the minds of them that believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel, and Satan will use anything within his realm, within the power that he has been allotted, to blind the minds of men, whether it be drugs, sex, fame, popularity, good times, whatever it is, Satan will use to blind the minds of men and women so that they will not receive the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. But you see, there's another problem, and that is with Christians, as I said, and not having our eyes open to see. And I believe as Christians, we need to realize that this is a battle, that this is a war that's going on, and we have been called, uh, by the general, the Lord Jesus Christ. We need our eyes open to see that there is a battle going on, and that we need to marshal all our forces. We need to put in all of our effort and fight the fight. Let's turn to, uh, Second Timothy and chapter two. I want you to notice what Paul tells Timothy, m Second Timothy chapter two. and verse three. Second Timothy in chapter two and verse three. Thou therefore endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Second Timothy, chapter two and verse three. You know, that's sort of the idea that people have today, is that, you know, you get saved and it's just the easy life. You know, you get saved and, and life is all just a something we just sort of coast. And I see so much, and I get caught up in the same thing myself, just sort of drifting through life without any meaning, without any real purpose, and living life as comfortably as we possibly can. And yet Paul's exhortation to the young man Timothy is this: Endure hardness. He's telling him, Timothy, it's not going to be easy. Timothy, it's going to be rough. Timothy, there are going to be hardships, and there are going to be, uh, deprivations. You're going to be deprived of certain things, and, uh, you're going to have to endure things, Timothy. It's not going to be easy. It's a war, Timothy, and you, as a soldier, a good soldier of Jesus Christ, had better get ready to endure some hardship if you want to live for him. And you know, it's something the Apostle Paul says in the book of Romans, and I think it's the key, that, uh, it's high time we awoke and that we put on the uniform, the armor of righteousness. He says that we as Christians have been given a uniform. We're to follow as soldiers of Jesus Christ and be ready to endure the hardships that come with being a soldier. And he says, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ, no man that warreth entangles himself with the affairs of this life. You see, as a soldier, a good soldier and a hard soldier, he couldn't get all wrapped up in the things of this life and allow all those things to become an encumbrance to him and to weigh him down and to drag him down, uh, in his service. And he says the reason is that he may please him who has chosen him to be a soldier. You see, the good soldier wants to please the one who's chosen him to be a soldier, and he says because of that he couldn't get entangled in all of the affairs of this life because there was someone else that he wanted to please, and that was the one who chose him to be a soldier. I'm not saying we can't have a good time as a Christian. I don't think anybody has a good time as Christians do, and I know that from speaking on both sides of the fence. I've never had such a great time as I have since I've been saved, and yet at the same time, there comes a time in our lives when we must decide that this is serious business, that this is all or nothing, that Christianity is not a game, it's not a playground, that it's a war, and we have been called as soldiers, and we need our eyes open to the fact that we are either fighting or we're not. We're either in the battle fighting or we're not. And the Lord Jesus gave such clear commands that you're either for me or you're against me. He said, you choose what camp you're in. If you're not fighting for me, you're fighting against me. It's like Vance Havner said, and I've heard him say on occasion, he said, the problem with Christians today is that we try to be, uh, neither nor Christians in an either or world. You see, neither nor in an, in a world that is either or. We try to straddle the fence and sit in the middle and never really go all the way one way or the other. Just like the Lord Jesus said to the Laodicean church, I would that you were cold or hot, one or the other, but you're lukewarm, and I'm going to spit you out of my mouth. You're lukewarm. And he told them, buy of me salve, buy of me ointment, have your eyes anointed so that you can see the wretched condition that you're in. That's what he told the Laodicean church. But you see, this is, this is the problem I think that we have as Christians, of just sort of aimlessly drifting through this life. We may not be living our lives wrong, but have we really come to that place in our life where we said this is serious business? That the conditions of discipleship are all or nothing. Are we willing to pay the price to be disciples of Jesus Christ and to really be followers of him? To endure the hardness that comes from being a good soldier of Jesus Christ. And I know that even as I sit here and say this message, that most of the people that are sitting in this room will not regard what I've said, because that's the way it is. And the Lord never did so very well himself with the great crowds. But there will be in this life, and out of this room possibly, and in our generation, those few, one or two, three or four, here and there, out of the crowd, who'll say, I'm willing to follow Jesus Christ, no matter what the cost, no matter what the price may be, no matter what the hardships might be that I have to endure, I'm willing to follow him and give him my all because I've realized what the scripture says, that he died for me, and I'm not my own. I'm bought with a price, and it will be those who will endure as the good soldiers of Jesus Christ, and that's the one that I exhort you to be, to really follow the Lord in that way. You know, one of the most tragic wars of this century, I guess, was the Vietnam War. Uh, that was a war that's still surrounded by question marks and, uh, misunderstanding, and maybe we'll never really know everything that went on. But, you know, no matter who you talk to about the war, at least in my experience, I find this to be true. It doesn't matter who I talk to about it, most of the people that I talk to and have talked to about it say this one thing. They'll say, we either should have won the war or got out. We either should have went in there to win or not been there at all. And that's a general consensus. The majority of people believe that that's true. We either should have went in there and just done whatever was necessary and won that thing, but we never should have lingered all those years and never really accomplished anything. And you know, I guess that's sort of what I'm trying to say, uh, today, that there's a war going on, and yet we don't find Christians with the attitude that we've got to get in there and win that thing. No matter what the price costs, no matter what the sacrifice to myself is, there's a war going on, and if I don't give my best and give my all, it's going to be, you see, the war is won, really, technically speaking, but it, there are these little battles that continue until the ultimate end. Christ has won the major victory, and the war itself in the future sense is already won, but until then, there's a battle going on, and there are souls that are hanging in the balance, and we need to fight the fight. Let's look to the Lord in a word of prayer. Just while our heads are bowed and our eyes are closed right now, I just want to exhort you that are out there. Maybe one or two in a year or more who've never really trusted Christ as Savior. And there's a battle going on in your life right now. The devil is doing everything he can to keep you from believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. He'll tell you every lie that is possible. Wait for tomorrow. It's not worth it. Don't try it. You don't need it. You're okay. Whatever the lie might be, he's trying to tell you. You realize that the Bible says that you need salvation. If you don't get saved, you'll die and go to hell for all eternity. There's a battle going on right now in your heart. I just pray that, uh, you right now turn to the Lord. Receive him as Savior and be saved. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Many has received him, to them gave he the power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. He that heareth my word and believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life. Turn to him now and receive him as Savior, and be saved today. Father, we pray for that one, that two, those three that might be in here this morning unsaved, Lord, and we know the battle that goes on. We know the tugging at the heart that goes on, as the Spirit of God convicts of sin and of the need of salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. We too probably most of us, have experienced that tug of war that takes place. We know that we should, and yet for some reason we don't. Father, we pray that they lay down their arms today, surrender to the Lord Jesus, and be saved. Right now, even where they're sitting, Lord, that they would receive Christ as their Savior and be saved. Father, for those of us who are Christians, help us, Lord, in light of the scripture, to examine our lives, to see whether we have ever really entered into the fact that this is a battle, that we are soldiers, and we have been called to endure hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ. Lord, help us, if we're not willing, to pray that you would make us willing, to be willing, to serve you, to give ourselves wholly and unreservedly in the service of thy kingdom. How could we refuse, Lord, when all you want is the best for us, when all you want is what's absolutely the best for us? Lord, help us in the shortness of time that we have here on this earth to be good soldiers and to live that life that stands out, that life that is marked by the fact that we march to the beat of a different drummer than this world does. Help us, we pray, Lord, and we give you thanks in our Lord Jesus.