The Government And You, Part 1

Today on the Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ my church thinks of me because any and all that's going to matter is what my Lord thinks of and that's the believers mindset.

II move for an audience of one, and by the way, you better because the bema of Christ. The judgment seat of Christ.

One of us who are children of God stand before a given account for lives to him why he's Lord is our master. That's an important thing for us to understand going up today on this additional Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie going pastor Bill Gebhardt now is once again he shows us how God's word means.

Over the years asked me what this past some things must've seemed obvious to Debbie.

The question I often get and in a tongue-in-cheek way.

I would always say this short answer is my job to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. Last week we looked at the 23rd Psalm, and those six verses probably contain more comfort than any verses in the Bible. But today I want to look at the other side of the coin, I want to afflict the comfortable. The early church in Antioch was called by the enemies of Jesus Christ. Christians that's where the term came from little Christ's and it's interesting that term is stayed with it to the present day everyone claims that that's what we are were Christians, but the name came from our enemies.

But the Bible says there's a lot of names for us. A lot of things about us.

John MacArthur writes in addition to the name Christian. The Bible uses a host of other terms to identify followers of Jesus Scripture describe this as aliens and strangers to God, citizens of heaven.

Lights of the world.

We are heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, members of his body were sheep of his flock ambassadors interservice friends around his table. We are called to compete like athletes or to fight like soldiers or to abide like branches and applying and even desire his word as newborn babes, desire milk. All of those descriptions, each in its own unique technique way help us understand what it means to be a Christian when anyone is talking to you and your describing yourself. How do you describe yourself believer Christian follower, disciple, but MacArthur goes on and says this yet. The Bible uses one metaphor more frequently than any of those.

It's a word picture that you might not expect. But it is absolutely critical to understand what it means to follow Jesus Christ. The word that he is referring to slave slave. How often have you send this to anybody and you need to know on the sleeve of Jesus Christ. We don't use that word and by the way, we don't even like the word, even the translators don't like the word GoToMeeting James chapter 1 verse one we don't report to just one verse in the very first one is just James's introduction to his letter.don't forget this important point. James is the Lord's brother. He didn't convert to Christianity until after he saw the resurrected Jesus Christ. He was no follower of Christ until that moment. But notice now how James describes it in one of the safe, James. He said the brother of Jesus Christ. That's what you do or I do is my brother he says James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.

While no notice. The translators translated bondservant.

You know why because bondservant is an offensive do you do like that.

You know what a bondservant is now, but I'm just a bondservant, the word has no meaning with the word is due loss and everywhere it's ever used in the Greek New Testament.

It means slave. The vast majority of people in the Roman Empire were slaves due loss. Paul calls himself a slave.

Peter calls himself asleep. Timothy Paul calls tells Timothy your slave June calls himself a slave. Everybody calls himself a slave of Jesus Christ. Nobody calls himself a slave of Jesus Christ anymore.

We don't like that term so we use bondservant.

In fact today.

This slave terminology is completely ignored and a lot of evangelical churches. I mean, here's the words we like to use what it means to follow Jesus success. Health and prosperity wealth pursuit of my dreams, personal ambition, personal gratification.

These are the words we like, but those words don't stand up in Scripture at all but due loss slave does slavery as part and parcel of the entire word of God in Genesis 15 right in the beginning Abraham is being talked to by God and God is giving him the Abraham a covenant all the blessings that are going to come upon Abraham. God says oh by the way your offspring are going to be slaves for 400 years and they were just in oh by the way, by God, they're all going to be slaves. The word habit in the Old Testament is the word slave it's you. 799 times in the Old Testament is a very common term. This idea of slave. In Exodus 19 God says Israel is my possession. In other words, I own you. Ironically, New Testament. He said exactly the same thing. You're my possession. Ionia, that's the very definition of what it means to be a slave. This will never stop telling me now to Revelation chapter 7 verse 33, right at the end of the Bible and here we are at the end times. The end time of the end times and were talking about the hundred and 44,000 witnessing Jews who are going to witness for God during the great tribulation.

In verse three. John writes this. Do not harm the earth or the seal of the trees, until we have sealed the bond servants of our God on their four heads. Notice the translators once again say bondservant, and the reason is you and I don't know what that means. So all other disco bondservant due loss the slaves.

That's exactly what they are there slaves. In fact, Abraham is described as a slave.

Moses, a slave, David slave Elijah slave Paula slave Peter slave Judas, whereby you and me use a term at all. You see yourself in that way, in any sense of it.

You see, because you you are slave you were bought you were paid for you were bought out of the slave market of sin by Jesus Christ. He purchased two other rods oh Exxon garage on the true or the words we translate we deem. He has bought you with his life.

You are a person of his own possession and is even more because of that and notice what James said when James wrote he said the bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. Us Lord. It means master. That's what it means if you gonna save someone own slaves in Roman Empire, you would say there the chorion so there slaves. They are the master of the slaves. Jesus called Lord now did we trivialize the word and almost mean some like sweet to us is the Lord, George Harrison, a Beatles member, my sweet Lord wrote a trivial song about the my sweet Lord, Lord, you 750 times in the New Testament says, oh God says you I wanted to get this Lord is a very important thing for you and I do understand he is the Lord Jesus Christ.

That's why by the way they call themselves slaves. They knew he's the master he is purchase them a people for his own possession. It wasn't just people in the Bible, Polycarp and Ambrosio Aster, and Augustine all rolled in their own writings a call themselves slaves of Christ, but we don't talk like that federal almost uncomfortable with it. But if you get comfortable with and I wanted to what it's wonderful about it or tell you how to live your life. The first person I heard say this was John MacArthur many years ago, and other subsided since and I use it once you understand who Christ is and who you are. I would say this way I live for an audience of one, just one I remember.

John said I don't care what other people think of me. I don't care that you love me or don't love me.

I don't even care what my church thinks of me because any and all that's going to matter is what my Lord thinks of me and that's the believers mindset. II live for an audience of one, and by the way, you better because the bema of Christ. The judgment seat of Christ.

Every one of us who are children of God will stand before and give an account for our lives to him why he's Lord is our master.

You see, that's an important thing for us to understand. One writer said this as a slaves. We are expected to pay Jesus Christ. First Peter 12 to present our bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to Christ. Romans 12 one to keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight.

First John 322.

That's what happens now.

I've said all that just to get an intro here. The point of it is this one of the things it's been really hard for me to watch is the way many of us of the reacted to government we have a variety of reactions, but many of them are very very sad to me from a biblical point of view. So my question is what does our Lord and Master say what does our Lord and Master say about how you and I should react to human government. That's a very important thing for us, especially your slave of Jesus Christ.

In fact, his voice should be the only voice that motivate you know he said a person linens in Matthew 22.

He talked about it. One aspect. Matthew chapter 22 in verse 15.

It was a trap. By the way, set up again by the Pharisees.

It says in the Pharisees sent out and plotted together how they might trap him in what he said and they sent their disciples to him along with their audience seemed Rabbi, we know that your faithful and true to teach the way of God in truth and defer to no one for you are not partial in any way.

That's the kiss suffers. You know you're just wonderful. You know everything member. These are trap is Otello said what you think is unlawful to give a poll tax to Caesar or not.

Now you got understand the prevailing view in Israel among 95% of all the Jews is they hated paying tax the wrong they hated it.

They felt it was sinful for them. They took Deuteronomy chapter 7, which God told them you can have an outsider number someone outside of visual, major nation, you can bring them and let them lead when they took that as well.

That's Oklahoma's none but that's not exactly what room did Rome came in and conquered them. So there are a conquered people. It wasn't like they made Roman charge. Rome took charge and so consequently they knew they had all the people on their side about this in one of the trap Jesus perceived their malice and he said why are you testing me, you hypocrites at his right to the heart of it.

He never minces words is an okay show me the coin that is used for the poll tax; and a product at the nearest and he said whose likeness and inscription is this, and they said that Caesar's is our Raven render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the thing in regards what brilliant answer whose whose likeness is on is going Rome's pay room the tax you rendered a wrong which you all wrong.

You render to God what you God.

No understand Jesus is not advocating the terrible taxes. The Romans put on the people.

He's not so also not advocating Matthew and executives were tax gatherers and all the extortion and that they did on people not talking about that he said about what's your responsibility to the human government that's over you right now. He said you pay taxes member all the way to the cross when he was being interviewed by Pilate said the pilot, my kingdom is not of this world. Jesus basically is saying look I know there's a political system going on here, but I'm not here to reform it. That's not what I'm doing.

I'm not here to reform the system. I'm here to promote the kingdom of God. That's exactly why you're here. And so my that's were here for were here to promote the kingdom of God.

We have much bigger fish to fry than a political system, the eternal destiny of people God is entrusted in our hands. There's nothing more important than that to us that should be the priority of our lives, but there's a lot more in the Bible than that I want to go with me now to Romans chapter 13 Romans chapter 13. This is one of the longest passages but by the way, it's all through the Bible.

Peter talk about it. True.they all talk about and I want you to understand the context for what they're saying here.

He starts out in Romans 13 it is gives us the standard in verse one.

He said every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. There is it not try to interpret that in some different way could be clearer than this and he noticed the principal was every person he does he mean just believers. He means everybody. Everybody should be subject to governing authorities measuring to tell his wife because government after the fall was set up by God to see everybody is to be subject that word subject is hoopoe toss oh, and it's an imperative mood it's committed. You have to like yourself to be line means the lineup under or to submit. He said every person to be put in subjection to governing authorities. No qualification given here.

Now you know when you might think what you get away with one of the governing authority stink. By the way, almost always run all the history of all men for all time. They've always stuck government is stunk everywhere at all times. That's government that's human government. They never worked well, but this one particularly stinks. This is Nero Emperor of Rome he's insane. This is a man who actually had garden parties and would take Christians tie them up.

Poor wax over them and will item so they would burn door in his garden parties that's imposed talking about Nero.

Now I know you don't like the party on the other side of the whatever party you belong to their it can be anything worse than those guys. Nero was so much worse than anybody was ever been in American history.

There's no one like Merrill, I mean the only modern-day guy could even compare to nearby be Adolf Hitler. I mean that in.

That's what Paul says it you have to subject yourselves said whoa.

That doesn't even while when you mean now what we often say is, but aren't there times when we shouldn't subject ourselves. Yes there are times in the Bible tells us some of those they might be different to what you think though one of Pharaoh decides all the male children have to die in your believing Judah you kill your male child new not kill my child during a can to keep my child alive. You see, I'm not going to kill my child. Or we could leave and one to Daniel.

Remember when Daniel and his friends got there they said you have to eat the king's food and Daniel said that's not kosher, I can't eat food that goddess said that I can and I must not eat, but even Daniel. Remember what Daniel did. There was amazing to me is he goes to the commander and ask him.

Can we eat our own food and you can watch and see how well we do, he would submitted to the commander and so they did need to food about Shadrach me shack and Abednego Nebuchadnezzar build a 90 foot statue of himself.

Quite an ego and he supported me and what Shadrach me shack and Abednego say Sir we can we can't worship is about 300 furnace heated up seven times as normally you can do that but were not in worship. What we are God do then deliver us one way or the other will be delivered from you to either deliver some the furnace will deliver us to heaven his presence. But either way were not worshiping. So they said no member Peter and John, the book of acts when I preaching the gospel and after the Sanhedrin got them and then told him no more preaching the gospel. No more preaching about Jesus and what they say we must obey God rather than men but notice how huge these issues are.

This is a no no I can defy government in any issue I want to get out of the Bible.

The Bible does not say that the Bible gives you the commandment to meet a commandment to be subject to the government, and it doesn't have any qualifications on how good the government is gives us know the reason for the behavior.

The latter part of verse one. Four. There is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. What you mean present United States established by God. The speaker of the house was established by God is ill. We do this. Yes, because God even said Nebuchadnezzar's established. He said I put them on the throne. I establish human government.

But don't miss this. The reason God can do that is sovereign over everything. He sovereign over every thing every form of human governments ever just got said yes I'm sovereign over that I will work all things for the good. That's what he does in a fallen world with curse people, by the way Jesus is and just Lord is. He's the King of Kings and Lord of lords.

All the Lords although I Mortimer everybody. In fact, positive Libyans, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess what Jesus Christ is Lord, and care for an atheist and agnostic, a Buddhist, a Muslim, it won't matter one day you'll be on your knees and your say Christ as Lord. I am Lord over everything. Think of that.

Think of even the antichrist.

He takes over the whole world. Okay is not consistent crisis so much more to this he'll tell you when O'Connell tell you where you come from the tell you how long he'll be there to tell you what all do dinner tell you about how he does away with getting Olga pastoral never on the radio ministry of fellowship Lord, if you ever miss one of our broadcast or maybe you just like listening to the message one more time. Remember the good a great website called one place.com that's one place.com and you can listen to Fellowship in the Word online at that website you will find on with today's broadcast but also many of our previous audio programs is that Fellowship in the Word. We are thankful for those who financially support our ministry and make this broadcast possible. Yes, all of our listeners to prayerfully consider how you might help his radio ministry continuous broadcast on this radio station by supporting us monthly with just the one time support for ministry can be sent to Fellowship in the Word. 4600 Clearview Pkwy., Metairie, LA 7006 if you would be interested in hearing today's message in its original format that is is a sermon, the pastor will deliver during a Sunday morning service of fellowship monitored visit our website FVC Nola.org that FVC 10 oh LA.O RG at our website you will find hundreds pastoral sermon you can browse through our sermon archives defined sensors are looking for. You can search by title. Once you find the messenger looking for. You can listen online or through preferred sermon and listen at your own. And remember all this absolutely free of charge.

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