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. I want you to look on the screen. You can certainly turn to it if you wish to, but I'm just going to go through these quickly.
In 1 Samuel chapter 1. You are familiar with the story of Hannah. But I just want to show you just a couple highlights of this. In verse 1, it says, There was a certain man of Ramathim Zophim of Mount Ephraim. Are you all impressed with that?
I thought you should be. And he. Yeah. I'm getting nowhere fast tonight, I'm telling you. I make a joke before a serious song like The Judgment and I'm sorry.
Notice this, and his name was Elkinah. And look at verse 2. And he had two wives. And the name of one was Hannah and the name of the other Penina. Here's the issue.
Penina had children, but Hannah Had no children.
Now you know the reasons in Bible days, especially why this was harder. I want to look at verse 4. And when that time was that Elkinah offered, he gave to Penina his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters portions, but unto Hannah he gave a worthy portion. for he loved Hannah. But the Lord Had shut up her womb.
Now notice that. The Lord had shut up her womb and in the middle of that notice that her husband had bent over backwards really to try to do even more. to try to encourage her and to love her. And notice this in verse 6, it says, And her adversary also provoked her sore. for to make her fret because the Lord had shut up her womb.
Verse 9, it says, So Hannah rose up early after they had eaten in Shiloh and after they had drunk.
Now Eli the priest sat upon a seat by a post of the temple. of the Lord and she was In bitterness. of soul. And prayed unto the Lord and wept sore.
Now, just a couple things. Number one, we see circumstances. I brought about some bitterness in her life. The circumstances here are that she wanted to have children. She didn't want to have children for any kind of a selfish reason.
Really, she wanted children for her husband. And she loved her husband. He was a good man, by the way. But circumstances have brought this bitterness of soul, but not only that. Her adversary here, the other wife, Penina, you know, she had children, and not only did she have children, but then she kind of rubbed it in Hannah's face.
that she couldn't have children.
So now she has circumstances, now she has an individual, and that can bring bitterness. But I want you to notice too, in verse 5, it says that the Lord had shut up her womb. But there was a little bit of bitterness here with God. Because after all, you and I, when circumstances happen to cause bitterness, we Many times want to say, well, God, you could have controlled it, you could have stopped it, you could have done different.
So we see all kinds of things, and she ends up bitter. I want you to notice in Esther chapter 3, verse 13, It says, and the letters were sent by post into all the king's provinces. to destroy, to kill, to cause to perish all Jews. Both young and old, little children and women, and one day. even upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month.
which is the month Adar, and to take the spoil. of them for a prey. Verse 14, the copy of the writing for a commandment to be given in every province was published. unto all people that they should be ready against that day. We all know here that here you have Esther here, and so we have what's going on here is that the king has signed a decree that they're going to kill everybody in one day, and I'm not going to get into all the ends of it.
I preached on it recently. But what we know is because of this, now they have fear that has settled. You have a king that is being unfair, but you really have a whole group of people that has talked the king into being unfair. And notice, if you would, here in chapter 4, verse 1, it says, When Mordecai perceived. All that was done.
Notice that. When he kind of took a look at everything that happened, all that was done. These are things that didn't just happen by circumstance, these are things that people orchestrated something against. Notice this. Mordecai rent his clothes, put on sackcloth with ashes, went out into the midst of the city, and cried, with a loud And Bitter.
Cry. This hurt, fear. abandonment, deception, everything. had kind of turned into bitterness in his life. I don't know about you, but things can happen.
Let me show you in Job chapter 7 verse 11. You ever heard the story of Job? You ever met somebody or heard of somebody that probably had a right? to bitterness. In Job chapter 7, verse 11.
It says, Therefore, I will not refrain my mouth. I will speak in anguish of my spirit. I will complain. in the bitterness of my soul. Job suffered loss.
Then he had friends. that were so high and mighty that they made accusation and blamed him and all these different things. And what is Job? Job ends up bitter. You know what's interesting is that all the things that happened to Job, he never turned his back on God.
So, but bitterness crept in. And all through the book of Job, you find that while we look at a man that we think, man, he handed it well, God sees something on the inside that we don't always see. And bitterness had entered. And in chapter 40 of Job, the Bible says that literally God turned his captivity when he prayed for his friends. He had become bitter at his friends.
Have you become bitter at anybody? Luke chapter 22, verse 62. I just want to read this short phrase. And Peter went out. and wept.
bitterly. Y'all know what Peter did? He cursed and swore and denied. His Savior.
Now, I'm going to tell you something. That's one thing when you have circumstances and individuals and your adversary and you have fear and you have deception and you have all these things, but this is one of the worst things. Peter literally was bitter because of himself. Ain't nobody caused this. He did.
I want you to notice Colossians chapter 3, verse 19. The Bible makes a little statement here: husbands, love your wives and be not. Bitter. against them. It's very odd why God would put this right here.
He never actually says, Wives, don't be bitter at your husbands. He probably knew there was no chance they're going to, no matter. You know, might as well not. Might as well not waste room in the canon of scripture. But But what he is saying here is this: that men.
Husbands? We have to be careful because apparently for God to put it here, there is a tendency. At some point in life. And what often happens with men is they spend their whole life, many of them, working. And they're basically a paycheck, they feel like, to their family.
And they're there when they need something. But everybody goes on to somebody else when they want friendship, companionship, whatever, but they want dad when they need something. And before long, you find out that he marries a woman, and then kids become her life. And then you think, okay, they're finally going to leave the house.
Now I'm finally going to be the priority to my wife, but her kids have kids, and now the grandkids are the priority to her. And all of a sudden, many times in a man's life, he gets to a point where he realizes. Everything's always been about everyone else. What about me? It happens.
Hebrews chapter 12, verse 15 says this, looking diligently. Lest any man fail of the grace of God.
Now listen to this passage. Lest any root of bitterness Springing up trouble you. It means this: it's going to take God's grace for you to not allow roots of bitterness to grow in your life.
Now, here's what's interesting: it doesn't say, lest any root of bitterness, if it springs up. It doesn't say that. It says, lest any root of bitterness springing up. That means this: things that have happened to you, things people have done, it's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when they come back up in your mind and they come back up in your life. God never said that, you know what, if you keep thinking about it, that means you never really got, no, no, no.
God said here that those things are going to spring up. But you and I have got to be careful that when they do, we don't allow them to turn into bitterness. Because here's what happens when they do is when you allow it it says they trouble you And thereby many be defiled. You know the worst thing about bitterness, it hurts you more than anyone else.
Now it hurts a lot of other people. But nobody does it hurt worse than you.
So that brings us to Ephesians chapter 4. Just want to give you a quick overview there. I don't know what reasons, and there's all kinds of reasons, a lot of things can happen in life. You say, Preacher, have you ever been bitter? Yeah.
I think I have. There might have been. A time in my life you had asked me that, and I'd have said no. But now that I'm older hopefully a little bit wiser and a little bit more honest. Yeah.
There's been some seasons of my life, maybe, where I allowed bitterness. to creep in. I will tell you this, honestly, in an open heart, I've met a lot of pastors that are bitter. I have been around a lot of pastors. And I got to be honest with you, just the...
You know, coming up 15 years that I've really been a pastor, been in ministry my whole life, but. I I can see there are certain things that have happened that I can see how. A pastor can get that way. But my wife and I have been around pastors, not all of them, not a lot of them, but I have been around some. They just have a bitter spirit.
They're just angry. And probably they were done wrong. Probably they were treated unfairly. But that spirit has turned bitter. And my wife and I have been around that and many times we've sat in a car.
after being around that a little bit and just looked at each other and say, listen, let's. Let's make sure neither one of us ever end up there. in ministry. I don't want to die a bitter. angry person.
I want to die fat and happy. That's what I. I don't want to be bitter and angry. I'm so glad Xavier says that you have a biblical, healthy preacher. And I.
At least I'm biblical, I hope. Let's get to Ephesians chapter 4 before I make a mess of everything. Look at verse 26. Be ye angry and sin not. Let not the sun go down upon your wrath.
Here's why. The more day by day that wrath stays there. Guess what it's going to turn into? Bitterness. It says, Neither give place to the devil, and grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice. Be ye kind one to another. tenderhearted. Obviously, verse 32 is the opposite of... Bitterness.
Kind One to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake. hath forgiven you.
Now if I can give you just a bit of More introduction. According to our passage, no believer has the right. to be bitter. According to this passage, Verse 31 says, Let all Bitterness. Let all bitterness be put away from you.
According to this passage, God says, no one has the right. to be bitter. We are told that we are to release all bitterness and that it is to be put. Away from us. That means this is going to require some action.
on your part and my part. It tells us that we must release bitterness. And here's why. you have to release bitterness because bitterness will never release you. It'll hang on to you as long as you allow it.
you're going to have to release it. You may as we call cut the tip of the weed off. But when you just cut the tip of a weed off, it's going to keep growing. You're going to have to get down and pull it up by the roots. or you'll never be free from it.
Number one, I want you to notice out of this passage, I want you to see the contamination of bitterness. This passage makes it very simple. Look at verse 30. Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God whereby ye are sealed unto the day. of redemption.
I want to look at this whole passage and how does bitterness contaminate?
Well, number one, it gives place. To Satan. Look at verse 26. Be ye angry and sin not. Let not the sun go down upon your wrath.
Why? Because when that happens, neither give place to the devil. Do you know that when you and I allow a spirit, an attitude of bitterness to come into our lives, we give Satan place. in our lives. We give him ground.
We open up the door. We give him an avenue. to come into our life. and ruin it. Man, it's been years since I mentioned it and we got some new people, but Um Talking about bitterness and even in evangelism.
I, you know, the corner house up here where Miss Sarah lives, I lived there for you know six years here as the youth pastor, and when I Went to evangelism. I felt Brother Joe never asked me to, but I felt like I need to get out of this house. I don't need to, you know, kind of thing. They might want to bring someone else in. I don't want to be in the way, and he would never say something to me.
But I said, I need to get out of this house. And I'll just, you know, long story short, a man in our area, Brother Grover Sugart, and Sugart, not Sugart, anyway, Sugart, and Brother Harold in our church at that time, you know, worked for him. And anyway, so there's this little house in Winston on Rickard. Wasn't it Rickard? Rickard Road.
And so I got in that house $70,000. That's a big Could you imagine getting a house for $70,000 now? Wouldn't that be great? I mean, it had three bedrooms, you know, kind of a thing, and it had no bathroom, but it had three bedrooms, and it was a steal of a deal. I'm just joking.
It did have.
So I got this little house on Rickard Road. You know, it was a newer house. It had, you know, more room than this house here on the corner. And this was a house, you know, years ago. There's a ceiling in this house.
It's interesting. And everybody needs to stop by the house after and ask Sarah to let you see on the roof. Every one of you just go on up there, the house, she won't mind at all. But the living room has this plaster treatment where you know sometimes they're textured. But this house up here in the corner, it has textured plaster that comes down this far from the ceiling.
It's like glops. It looks like the moon upside down. It looks like caverns on the ceiling. And so I got this house, and here I was. I lived in this house for six years, but now I had a newer house, a bigger house, a nicer house now, in a sense.
And one day I was in Carnersville, did some grocery shopping and different things, and I was heading back home. Do you take those groceries, put them in the refrigerator? I pulled right into this corner house, got my grocery bags out in my car, walked in the door, and my key did not work. I'd already moved into the other house. But by habit.
I came right back. Even though it was smaller, older. I just, by habit, went right back to it. And you know, bitterness can become a habit in our life. God's got a bigger, nicer, better way for us, but just by...
Habit, it's become part of our life, we can quickly end up right back there. We give place. to the devil. Bitterness will do that. If the devil can get you bitter, then he can just about do everything else in your life.
I can't tell you how many bad things have happened in people's life, and when you trace it back, they got mad and got bitter. And then they left this church, and then they left, then they quit this, then they, and then thing after thing after thing happens, and you can trace it all the way back to where something happened, and it probably was unfair, and it probably wasn't right, but their reaction to it. They allow to develop and they give place to Satan. Notice, too, it grieves the Holy Spirit, secondly. It gives place to Satan.
Look at verse 30, and grieve not the Holy Spirit of God. Bitterness grieves the Holy Spirit of God. Why? Because anything that controls you Other than the Holy Spirit grieves him. Yeah.
And here's what's interesting. Bitterness. The Holy Spirit can't control you and bitterness at the same time. Bitterness can't stay in your life without controlling you. And that means this: if you allow yourself to get bitter, that's going to take control instead of the Holy Spirit.
The two can't coexist. And the Holy Spirit is grieved when we're bitter. Why? Because we allow that to control our minds. We allow that to control our feelings.
And in the middle of all that, the Holy Spirit is being grieved. And yet, we don't even notice it because we have justified our bitterness in our minds. Let me put it this way: we turn around twice and don't even realize. Holy Spirit's presence is gone. That's when we start making bad decisions.
One thing leads to another. Number two. We've seen the contamination, but according to this passage number two, I want you to see the cause. of bitterness.
Well, let's get into where this whole thing starts, verse 22. It says that ye put off concerning the former conversation, the old man. which is corrupt. Recording. to the deceitful lust.
Verse 23, be renewed in the spirit of your mind.
So we know that it's the old man, it's our old way of thinking. Notice verse 24, and that ye put on the new man. Which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Look at verse 30. And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God.
Whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
Now, let's just think this through. Really, the root cause of this is because the old man has taken over again. We're thinking wrong, we're thinking incorrectly, instead of renewing our mind. We have rebelled in our mind, and now the old man that should have been put off, it's our job to put off the old man, it's our job to put on the new man. But bitterness, what does that mean?
We take off the new man and we put back on the old man. And that's really, this is a spiritual battle. It means that that's really what is going on here. But notice verse 30. It says, Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God.
This whole thing of bitterness and anger and all these things. Notice this, whereby ye are sealed. Let me give you the cause of bitterness. If we can break it down real simply, number one is this: it's ignoring the providence of God. This verse says, when you've been saved, you are sealed.
by the Holy Spirit of God. What does that mean? You and I get bitter when things happen because we think that shouldn't have happened. And you know what? According to the person's actions, they should have never done that.
But if it has been allowed to happen in your life, You and I need to not get bitter about that because if we do, what we're saying is that the providence of God stinks. That God allowed something to me that should have never happened.
Now you're telling God what should have happened in your life. Do you understand when you and I get saved, we are sealed? By the Holy Spirit of God. That means this: that for me to get bitter at something that's taken place, that is me ignoring the providence of God. What should happen is, I should say this: I know God is in control, and I know that person didn't do right, and I know that person even sinned in what they said to me, how they acted towards me, what they've done, or whatever the case might be.
But I believe God's bigger than them.
So, bitterness ignores the providence of God. Notice, secondly. Ignorance or bitterness is ignoring the protection of God. It means this: when I'm sealed, it means not only that God is in control. But it means I'm protected, I'm sealed.
You know how oftentimes you and I get bitter? Because of fear. Look at Mordecai. Look at Hannah. Look at Peter.
He denied Christ because he was scared. Look at me. What we're saying is this: that not only is God not provident in my life, but it means this: that I don't believe God's going to protect me. And I believe in this, God shouldn't have allowed that to happen. He should have protected me from that, and he didn't, so I'm bitter.
Notice number three, it's ignoring the peace of God. You know, the Bible makes it clear that you and I have been given the peace of God, it's available. But bitterness means I'm ignoring the providence of God. I've gotten bitter, which means I'm ignoring the protection of God. And I'm bitter, which means I'm ignoring the peace of God.
Instead of putting on that new man. That sees God as sovereign. That new man that trusts God's plan, that trusts God's will, that new man that literally says, you know what, I can have peace that passes understanding. We ignore all that. And that's the cause.
Of bitterness. Notice number three. This passage teaches us the The characteristics. of bitterness.
What does it look like in our everyday life? Notice number one, he says, let all Bitterness. You say, well, that's what we're talking about. Yeah, an attitude of bitterness. But this is the Greek word picria.
It means. Poison. Do you know that's the Hebrew word for bitterness? in the Bible means Poison. It's like when you have poisoned something and it tastes bitter.
There's poison in it. Bitterness. is poison In your heart. in your mind in your life. Notice this, he says, lot all bitterness and wrath.
Wrath is passionate. anger, its fierceness, its indignation. Then he says, and anger, anger is violent passion. Notice he says clamor. Glamour is an outcry.
That means what all this stuff I'm feeling inside, now I start. Letting people have it.
Now I lose my top.
Now I let my mouth say everything that my mind is thinking. Clamor. Then notice this, he says, evil speaking. This is blasphemy. This is vilification.
This means now, not only am I letting out what I'm mad at, now I'm trying to inflict pain back on the person. And guess what? You let bitterness stay very long. Before long, you're going to try to hurt them. Notice this last one is malice.
Malice is depravity. Naughtiness. And that's where this all will end up. Let me give you some characteristics of bitterness real quick that you just write them down. I don't need to.
Listen, we all know bitterness is wrong. It's not like this is rocket science here. We all know it, but guess what? We all still deal with it. Notice this first, bitterness remembers details.
Bitterness remembers details, not the good ones. When you're bitter, you forget all the good details. Bitterness remembers the details.
Now let me recall the story of Hannah. Hannah, all the details were: I can't have children. My adversary has children. She is giving her husband what I want to give my husband, and now she's giving me a hard time. This is unfair.
The circumstances are unfair. But guess what? Hannah missed in the middle of all that? Everything that her husband was trying to do. Her husband gave her twice as much.
As he gave penina. But she didn't see it. Why? Because she remembered all the bad Details. That's what she focused on.
That's what bitterness does. Bitterness remembers the details.
Secondly, bitterness. accuses others and excuses self. Can I tell you a lot of times the things you've gotten bitter at somebody about, you've done to others? Uh zero. Can I tell you some of the things you get bitter about?
You've done worse. We're a bunch of hypocrites. A lot of the time. Buddy, we're wounded, we're hurt.
Somebody said this, somebody said that, and yet. If we were honest, we've done the exact same thing at times. But that's what bitterness does. It excuses us. And it accuses everyone else.
Notice thirdly, bitterness lives alone. Listen, what does it say? Bitterness will defile you. And bitterness will defile those around you. Bitterness lives alone.
Nobody can be around bitterness. Very long. Notice fourthly, bitterness reveals itself.
Now I hate to tell you this. But if you struggle with bitterness in your life, there's people around you that know it.
Now you might think they don't. But it shows. Say, preacher, do you know some bitter people? Yeah. Sure do.
But who are they? I'm not going to tell you. I mean, why would I say my wife's name out loud? You know, I'm not going to do that. I'm not gonna Somebody like, you're so mean to her.
Hey, you got no clue, okay? I'm Elkina over here, all right? I don't have two wives. I don't have two wives. Don't throw your shoe at me.
So you know some bitter people, yeah. Yeah I do.
Now, have I ever looked at him and said, you know what, you're a bitter person. No, I don't do that. But you know what?
Some of you know some people like that too. You can't hide it. the characteristics of bitterness. Number four. We're almost done.
I want you to see the cure. 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 the sin nature.
Romans 3.23 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 Saviour. 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 any one. 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 Curlin Baptist Church. Dot 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.
