Welcome to the Kerwin Baptist Church broadcast today. Our desire is for the Word of God to be spread throughout the world.
So that all may know Christ. Join us now for a portion of one of our services here at Kerwin Baptist Church, located in Kernersville, North Carolina. Isaiah chapter 58, we're going to begin in verse 6 as Brother Frank read. Our series has been The Prison of Resentment. And tonight we want to talk about the yoke.
of resentment. What is a yoke? A yoke is literally as you think of Um cattle and we we we always talk about how a yoke of oxen we would say. And what a yoke is, it's literally something that is applied to an oxen and that yoke ends up controlling where they go. They might not wish to go that way, but the yoke is applied not just.
for them to be secured with a heavy burden that they're pulling. Be it a wagon or a trailer or something like that.
So they're not only pulling weight, but that yoke is also applied.
So that the driver can tell them where to go. And so, yoke can be a good thing. You know, the Bible says that Jesus literally says that my yoke is easy. And my burden is light. We want God's yoke on us so that we go the right direction.
And when when His yoke is on us. We don't have to pull the burden. He carries the burden for us. But if it's not his yoke, and it's the wrong kind of yoke. you end up bearing a load you can't bear.
And you end up heading a direction that you even really deep down don't want to go. But that's exactly where it's going to take you. That we're going to explain, and we want to look at some things, and I want to combine literally. teaching on the subject of resentment and on the subject of fasting. Because I do believe that there is a certain How would I say there's a certain level you can get to with resentment that you're going to need a breakthrough from God?
to get past this thing. Maybe not everybody here tonight deals with this, but there are certainly some that do. And I do believe that the Bible still teaches the principle of fasting. Fasting and prayer. And when you and I need a spiritual breakthrough, God often gives this principle of fasting.
And what I want to talk just a little bit about, and the whole thing's not about fasting, but what I want to talk about is that you and I should get to the point that maybe we would be willing to consider this. to help us get past something that we just can't seem. to let go of. And let me just say this, we talk about resentment. Um I don't think that God is mad at us when something has hurt us.
We can't help but be hurt, especially if somebody has done us wrong. It's not. necessarily a sin that were hurt. It's not even a sin that we're angry. We would be lifeless if we weren't hurt by something and bothered by something.
That's not the issue. The issue is when we allow that hurt, allow that anger to consume our life. And it literally controls us instead of us having control of it. That's why the Bible says, Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world. And so that's where we begin to get issues.
And it's not something sometimes, by the way, a person might say, Well, I don't think I really have an issue with resentment. And it might be because you don't necessarily face it every day, and it might not come up all the time. But many of you, there are things that happen here, and it just continues to come up at different seasons.
Something will happen, something will flare up, you know, lest any root of bitterness springing up what it does in our life. And so, all of us need to consider something that God gives the principle of fasting and prayer. And this is certainly something for us to consider when there is a hurt, an injury, a root of bitterness, or something in our life that we just can't seem to get past. And we'll explain it here in just a minute. And we prayed, and Brother Frank has read, I want to jump right.
Into it tonight, and we have revival coming up, so I'm going to be respectful of your time tonight. Notice number one: I want you to see the reasons to fast. The reasons to fast.
Now, Isaiah 58, verse 6 says, This: Is not this the fast that I have chosen? And he's getting ready to tell us. Why the reasons he gives to fast.
Now, in verses 3, 4, and 5, he tells us the wrong reasons to fast. That there are others that they did it for the wrong reasons, and they did it to just be able to say they did it, or they did it thinking that it's just a day of putting your body through something that's difficult. And those are not the main reasons for fasting. Fasting is to accomplish a purpose.
So, in verse 6, he says, This is not this the fast that I have chosen? Notice first, to loose the bands of wickedness.
So, the reasons to fast, number one, is to loose bands. It's what we would call strongholds. It's something that has a hold of our life. And God literally says here that fasting, proper fasting, can really help and aid us. It allows us to focus on God, not the resentment.
It allows us to deny ourselves. And by the way, resentment and bitterness can be very selfish in nature. And I don't mean it's like, so I'm the one that was done wrong, and now you're calling me selfish. No, what I'm saying is that resentment hangs on because that injury, we can't get past the fact that we were hurt, that we were done wrong. And it can almost become narcissistic in nature, that we just, it centers around us.
And so he says first here that the fasting is to loose the bands of wickedness, what we would call strongholds in our life. Notice number two, he says not just to loose bands, but to lift burdens. Look, if you would, verse 6: Is not this the fast that I have chosen? To loose the bands of wickedness, to undo, notice this, the heavy burden. Burdens.
So fasting isn't just, hey, something's got a hold of me. And I can't seem to get away from it. But fasting also helps us when I've got something on top of me that's just overtaking me. It's more than I can bear. I just can't get past it.
I can't get beyond it. It is like this pressure. And you know, there are certain things that people can do to you, and if you can't seem to get past it, and the injury is so deep, and I've been there, trust me, that literally the moment it comes into your mind. You'll be driving down the car. Maybe you've been blessed that you had three or four hours where you weren't thinking about it.
Maybe something else happened and you got a reprieve, and just for a moment, you got a bit of breath and a bit of life, and all of a sudden, you almost got normal again, and then all of a sudden, that thought will come in your mind. And as soon as it does, it's like an elephant sitting on you. It's like a burden. And that's what he's talking about here. To lift a heavy burden.
Notice third is to free from oppression. He says, Is not this the facet I have chosen? To loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let. the oppressed Go free. This is literally that I'm in prison.
I can't get out. Not only I can't get out, people can't get in. I'm isolated. And he said that literally you need freedom from this. This has become an oppression over you.
And a lot of things can become oppression, by the way. I'm just talking to you about resentment, but a lot of things can oppress us. Sin can oppress us, all those, a spirit, a wrong spirit can oppress us. All those things can. But we're talking about here: he says, listen, I want you to fast.
For these reasons. And the fasting isn't just for you to show off to everybody to tell them you fasted. Fasting has a purpose, and it is to loose these bands that have you so tightly constrained, and to lift off that heavy burden that you can't seem to bear, and to let the oppressed go free, to free yourself from these bars of containment that you can't get out of. And notice last, we see. Um to break yokes.
Now notice this, look at verse 6. He says to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free. Notice this, and that ye break. every yoke. What we're talking about here, we're talking about something that literally is attached to you.
It's got you enslaved. You know that when you put a yoke on oxen, they didn't ask for that. You know, oxen are not in a stable saying, hey, please put a yoke on me, please, please. You know, please constrain me. Please make me haul something 10 times heavier than me.
You know, it's not that they did that, they didn't want that. It was put on them. And now that it's on them, everywhere they go, they're pulling a weight that's not really theirs, and somebody else is controlling where they're going. A person who is literally struggling with resentment doesn't want to be there, doesn't want to feel that way, doesn't want to go there. There's this negativity attached to your life, and you don't even want it.
You don't even want it. You didn't want to go there. But the yoke. Of bondage, this yoke of resentment ends up leading us where resentment wants to take us. And we can't, even when we don't want to go there, we can't help but go there.
We'll wake up and say, I'm going to have a good day, and I'm not going to be negative today, and I'm going to feel great today. And by noon, we're back in the fetal position. Feeling sorry for ourselves. And so, literally, here he says, These are the reasons to fast.
Now, here's what I want you to, why I want to bring resentment into this. Interestingly enough, resentment is all Yeah. of these things. Notice resentment can be a stronghold in your life. Resentment can become a burden too heavy.
for you to bear. We know from our theme verse in Proverbs that resentment becomes a jail. of oppression. And may I say last that resentment becomes a yoke on you. And it begins to take you where resentment wants to take you.
Literally, resentment in the very nature of what resentment is. It literally is all four of these things. And if there's anything in your life that I would say, listen, if you're struggling with this, and we've been talking about it, if there's anything that I would say you ought to consider, if you've tried and you prayed and you've read and whatever you've done, and you just can't seem to get a step out of it, I just can't seem to loose that band, I can't seem to break that yoke, I can't seem to free myself from that oppression, you should consider fasting and prayer. You ought to consider it. I mean from fasting of to Do the old-fashioned Bible way where, hey, I'm going to fast for a day or I'm going to fast for two days, I'm not going to eat.
I'm going to use the time that I would eat to pray, and I'm going to focus on that. It might be that you need to, that resentment is bothering you, and you need to fast some things. And may I say this: if something that somebody does or the success that they're having, and every time you check it out on Facebook, it bothers you and gives you resentment, you need to fast Facebook. Are you all with me? And don't think I'm against Facebook.
That's not what I'm saying. I am saying that many times the very thing that is the source of contention we continue to bring into our life. And you know what? Maybe it means that you need to fast that. You need to get rid of that for a period of time because it is literally feeding the resentment that is there.
It is keeping you in that jail, that oppression. It is constantly weighing down on you as a burden. It literally has constricted you like bands of wickedness. And you and I need to consider that. He says, these are the reasons to fast.
Now, I want to follow out this passage and show you why it's important. Notice we talked about the reasons to fast. Notice, secondly, I want you to see the refreshment of freedom. This is what God says when you fast and you pray, and this fasting allows you to have a breakthrough where you do. Break those bands.
Where you free the oppressed, where you get out from under that heavy burden, where you literally break that yoke of resentment in your life. Look at this verse. Notice the difference. When you're under resentment, when you're under oppression, and notice when you have a breakthrough that only God can give. Notice this verse, look at verse 8.
Then. Shall thy light Break forth as the morning. You know, listen, bitterness, resentment, all that stuff, it's darkness. It's lonely. It is not a happy place to be.
None of you here that struggle with resentment enjoy it. That's right. And oppression is like a darkness. And notice what he says: when you finally get victory over this, then shall thy light. break through it forth in the morning.
You know, sometimes you and I, we have this resentment. The person that caused this doesn't think one thing about us. You know, they're going on with life, and their lack of compassion and care is probably what caused your resentment. It's like, and all of a sudden, may I say, if you and I aren't careful, we think, well, I need that person to change for me to get rid of this resentment. I resent this person because they didn't care, they didn't have compassion, they treated me like that.
So we want them to change before we get rid of that resentment. And, dear friend, why are you expecting someone to change when that's what they've always been? Yeah, right.
So it tells you right now, the problem's not them, they're never going to change. They're not worth this.
Okay, but what needs to change is: I've got to get out from under this jail. I've got to get out from under this burden. And it can't be done by me expecting them to change. You're going to wait the rest of your life. What has to be done is I've got to have a breakthrough with God.
And notice what he says: thy light shall break forth as the morning. Notice this, and thy light. Health. shall spring forth speedily. Did you get this?
Do you know that things like resentment and bitterness greatly affect our health? Do you know oftentimes we're trying all kinds of things to fix? And it's not even the problem. I've literally watched individuals that got victory over things. It looks like the weight of the world fell off them.
I've been at an altar with people, and people make decisions praying, heard a sermon, they're making a surrender to God, and it just. It's like they get breath again. It's like this heavy burden that they've been. He said, literally, light comes to your darkness. and health.
comes out of your sickness. You know when you struggle with resentment and bitterness, it affects you. You don't feel like doing anything. Everywhere you go, they're there in your mind. Everything I do, no matter anything good in my life, I'm still gonna have what they did to me facing me.
And so it just restricts all happiness, it restricts things, you just can't get past it, and all those things. And you know what? Literally, it affects your health. It eats away at you. He says here literally that thine health shall spring forth speedily.
Notice this third, and thy righteousness shall go before thee, and the glory of the Lord shall be thy re-reward. Re-reward. What does it mean? What does that mean? Re-reward.
Well, I can give you the technical term and give you the technical explanation. But you probably wouldn't let me just explain it in good old-fashioned redneck terms, okay? God's glory was always your reward, but you need to be reminded of it. It is your re-reward. It always was.
But you need to get victory over this so God's glory can be your reward again. What happens is, in resentment, we think that the only reward would be for God to get them back. or for God to change them. And you and I have got to get past that in the Christian walk and realize our reward. is for God to get the glory.
Do you know some of you some of the things that we resent or the things that we have resentment about? God allowed in our life so that He could get the glory for it.
Some of you might have something in the past, and somebody's done you wrong, a parent's done you wrong, whatever the case might be, and guess what? You have a story now. You can get up in front of God's people, or even individually, with a person, and you can say, Well, listen, this is what happened to me. I mean, my dad never this, whatever. My mom never this was never a mom to me, or whatever the case was, and treated me bad and struggled with this, whatever.
But can I tell you that was hard on me, and it stole me for a loop? But guess what? God got the glory out of this thing, and I'm here to tell you that even people that that happens to, God can do something in their life, and God can get the victory, and God can get the glory for it. And you know, you and I, sometimes we are so self-consumed with what we're going through, we don't realize there is a purpose for everything that's even happened in our life. God might not have caused it, but if God has allowed it, it's an opportunity for God to get glory out of this.
Nothing will get rid of your resentment more than when you realize what I have been resenting was an opportunity for God to get glory for something in my life. Man, I can sit up here and say, yeah, my dad did me wrong. Yeah, my dad, I don't even know him. Yeah, my mom, she just did me wrong and treated me rotten. But guess what?
God is greater than my mom, and God is greater than my dad, and God is greater than that person that physically abused me when I was young. God's greater than all that, and God can still get the glory. And when God's glory becomes our greatest reward, resentment fades away.
Somehow God got glory out of this. The refreshment of freedom. But he goes further. Number three, I want you to see the restoration of prayer. Here's what I have found, Kirwan Baptist Church.
It is hard to really struggle with resentment. and stay really close to God. He says, I've chosen this fast. to break these bands. To get the oppressed free.
To get this yoke off of you, to lift off that heavy burden. And when you do, Notice what he says here in verse 9: Then shalt thou call. And the Lord shall answer. Thou shalt cry. And he shall say, Here I am.
Amen. Oftentimes you've not felt God and felt God answer. Because of resentment. It's amazing to me that when you allow yourself to be totally. controlled and possessed by that, that it it really hurts.
Your prayer life. Let me say this. I believe one hundred percent for sure that. You're struggling with what somebody has done to you or said about you, whatever the case, or just a circumstance in life. You can even resent God.
And I mean, good Christian people that sit in church resent God sometimes. But can I tell you this? Oftentimes I'm saying we ought to go to God in prayer. He said, In everything through prayer and supplication, let your request be made known unto God. But look at me, if you are not careful, your entire prayer life will be consumed with that problem.
Your whole prayer life to God has nothing to do with God. It has nothing to do with what His will is. It has nothing to do with seeking His face. It is consumed with you talking to God about your issue.
Now, do not think I'm saying that you shouldn't talk to God about that issue, but I am saying this: you should, but there's a whole lot more to talk to God about. Prayer is a lot more than you spending 24 hours a day complaining to him about what this person did to you. And I am sitting here saying that resentment can actually take up quality time with God. Yeah, you're right. We become so obsessed with it that that's all we ever talk to him about.
We actually sit down and say, I'm going to pray one night. We pray for, we get three things out of our mind and we start right back on it. And you know what resentment turns into? You get somebody that's a close friend, they sit down, you can't talk two minutes, and all of a sudden, now you're talking about what that person did to you. He says, Then thou shalt call.
And I'll answer. I love that. Number four. He talks about the requirements for power.
Now, this is where we get specific. I love this. Look at verse 9. He says, Then thou shalt call? And the Lord shall answer, Thou shalt cry.
He'll say, Here I am. Notice this: if. Thou take away from the midst of thee. The yoke The putting forth of the finger. and speaking vanity.
Notice here he gives the requirements for power. He says, Let me tell you something. If you're going to call on God and He's going to answer, And you really want to see God do something in your life, you've got to get rid of these three things. He says, first, you've got to break that yoke. That's why we chose this fast.
You got to remove that yoke. Notice secondly he says you've got to remove the putting forth of the finger.
Now I did a little research on this. And can I tell you one of the easiest ways I can describe what this is? It's resentment. It's accusation. God says, listen, if you want me to start doing something for you.
You've got to get past this constantly accusing others. This putting forth of the finger means literally pointing out the fault of others. You know what resentment often can be? I just am constantly going to remind myself of what they did wrong. We all agree.
They did wrong. All God's children. Agree. They did wrong. But God says, if you want me to do something great in your life, You're going to have to remove that yoke.
And you're going to have to remove from your life. The putting forth of the finger. Look at me, it means this. When somebody injures you, And we get hurt. And it can lead to resentment.
If you and I are not careful, we will now be wired to watch. for every wound any person inflicts on us. We walk around through life just waiting on somebody. to hurt us. And we're watching for it.
I mean, we just walk around, a person can say something innocently, and we're going to take it wrong. Because literally, the putting forth of the finger has become a lifestyle. And here's what I'm saying as your pastor. God says we can be free of that. You don't have to live your life like that.
You don't have to live your life every time you're turning around. It's this person's in there, he did this wrong, and they did this. And, you know, there's some people, I mean, you can't talk to them five minutes where it's not, but everybody in their life has done them wrong. It's narcissistic. It's all about me.
It's the putting forth of the finger. And here's the problem with the putting forth of the finger: it never points back. You see, all of us, by the way, look at me. All of us have been done wrong by somebody. We've been hurt by somebody.
But can I give you a little bit of tidbit of information? We've all hurt somebody else. Whether we meant to or not.
Now, we might not have gone to the level, and I'm not trying to downplay what might be a serious injury, a physical abuse, a sexual abuse, or what I'm not talking about. I am talking about the fact that we treat people as if we are always the victim, they are always the perpetrators. And, dear friend, you and I have done it too. And God says, if you want me to do something great in your life, you're going to have to remove that yoke. You're going to have to remove that lifestyle, that state of mind that's always putting forth a finger.
And notice this, third, he says, you're going to have to remove that speaking word. A vanity. Vanity in your life. He says, you're going to have to get rid of that, the stuff that doesn't matter. The stuff that's not really important.
The stuff that we make big, but it's vain. It's vanity. Anybody else? A little bit convicted tonight. Anybody else?
teaching the Bible tonight, Curlin Baptist Church. He says, You You're going to call and I'm going to answer. You're going to scream. He says, you're going to cry. And I'm going to say here I am.
If You get rid of this yoke. You get rid of this putting forth of the finger. You get rid of this vain. speaking Notice he gives us here the rewards of victory. In verse 11, I want you to get this, and we'll be done here in just a minute.
When you and I have a victory in our life, a breakthrough. And sometimes it's going to take fasting and prayer. And that's why I'm saying this might not be for everybody tonight. The greatest news that anyone can receive is the news of the free gift of salvation found in Jesus Christ. It is our desire for you to know him personally, Would you take a moment to hear this today?
Every man is born with a sin nature. Romans three twenty three says For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. No matter how hard we try, we're not good enough to obtain God's glory. or to get to heaven. Because of that, sin carries the penalty of death.
Romans 6.23 says, for the wages of sin is death. But the gift of God is eternal life. through Jesus Christ our Lord. The wages of our sin, or the payment of our sin, only equals death and separation from God. But it's only through God's gift salvation through Jesus Christ that we can accept Him as our Savior.
Jesus Christ paid for your sin debt. The Bible says in Romans 5:8, But God commendeth his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. All you have to do is receive Christ. by faith as your Saviour. Romans ten nine says That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Verse 13 continues, For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. It's as simple as admitting that you're a sinner believing that Jesus is the only way. and calling upon his name. Bible says whosoever that's anyone can call upon the name of the Lord to be saved. Have you accepted Christ as your personal Savior?
There is no greater day than today to take care of this. Would you accept Christ as your Savior? If you have any questions, please give us a call at 336-993-5192 or visit our website at CrowinBaptastchurch.com. or visits that person at one of our three service times. We hope you have a great rest of your day.
God bless you. Mm-hmm.
