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Biblelinereek Bibleline, here God’s word on Bibleline, here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa,??? Clearly declaring the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. You can reach us toll-free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleLineMinistries.org homepage. We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ, and that today’s first part of this two-part message will be a blessing to you and your family.

your Bible and turn to the book of Jude, the book of Jude, the little book right before the book of Revelation, the book of Jude. I want to speak on a subject today, dead, while alive, dead, while alive. Now we know that when we’re born to this world we have a spiritual death because we’re not spiritually alive. So when you trusted Christ as your Savior, you’re made spiritually alive. So God says that we were dead separated from God. Means we’re separated from the Lord.

And then there’s those who have trusted Christ as Savior. You have eternal life, you’re going to heaven when you die. But because of your choice in life, if you live for the world and not for the Lord, then God says it’s like being dead. You’re not profitable to Him for what He intended. In other words, you’re not living for eternal things. you’reCriticals. You’re living for temporary earthly things. And so the Bible tells us here in the book of Jude, in verse 20, but ye beloved, building up yourselves.

Now, the reason we read and study God’s Word and do what God wants us to build our cells you can maintain a certain amount of stability and be mature, spiritually mature, seeking things that are above, setting your affections on things that are above, so that eternity is affected by your dedication to the Lord here in this life. So he says this also in verse 21, keep yourselves in the love of God looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life and some have compassion.

Now keeping yourself in the love of the Lord is keeping yourself having compassion. You see the Lord wants to live through us and it talks about the love of Christ develop in us and wants to be manifested through us. So this is how people learn to know that God really loves them because you love them. And if you don’t show them your compassion and whether you care whether they spend eternity in heaven or hell, that’s how God love is revealed through you and I.

So when we deny people the love of God, then they don’t know who God is. They don’t know what He’s done for them. They don’t know they can have eternal life. So God wants us to build yourself up and have compassion and then look at the next part of this verse where He says, and some have compassion and these three words, making a difference, making a difference. So while we’re in this life on this side of eternity, God wants you and I to make a difference, making a difference in what?

With the people that are here. You see, we already have eternal life. We’re going to heaven, but there’s people who have never heard and we are to have compassion and make a difference and then notice what he says in verse 23. And others save with fear pulling them out of the fire, pulling them out of the fire. You see, the people that are lost are not going to be determined in some judgment where they’re going to spend eternity. It’s already been determined.

Lost people go to hell. My father-in-law reached me with the gospel and pulled me out of the fire. It’s just whenever people die, that’s where they’re going. You and I are supposed to make a difference. Wouldn’t it be a shame to live your whole life and not make a difference as though you made no effect? Look at the text, the life of no effect would be a terrible way to live. Here you have trusted Christ the Savior. God let us live this side of the grave and we made no attempt to live our lives, no difference, pull nobody out of the fire.

We’re dead while we live. Concerning the thing that God wanted, you’re separated from the purpose of God. And I believe that’s something very important. Now, in the book of Romans, and we quote this just about every Sunday, I’m not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God on the salvation to everyone that believe it, to the Jew first and also to the gree. I’m not ashamed of the power of God, of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

It is the power of God. So the power of God working in your life is because of the gospel. No gospel, no power. And this is why it is so important to make sure that the gospel that we have is as powerful as it can possibly be. And we don’t delude it down with terminology and phrases or by adding any works in any way shape or form. It is powerful in its purest form. No works can be added to grace.

Works dilutes the message and cause it to be of no effect because it cannot save anybody. Grace and grace alone is the only hope that any man has. I just want you to look at the notes here and we won’t look at all these verses for the sake of time. But notice, but she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth. That’s the first Timothy, chapter five, verse six. She that liveth in pleasure, in other words, this is her purpose for life, to live in pleasure.

And the Bible says she’s dead, why she’s dead alive. There’s many people who have trusted Christ as Savior, but you’re dead, it means you’re separated from the purpose of God, you’re separated from the gospel itself. And that’s why you can go ahead and live your life as though just like everybody else does and no difference in your life, or the purpose of gold in your life. But it means you’re wasting your life because it means you’re not gonna have any effect up on them for eternity’s sake.

Now you can feed somebody, you can close somebody, meet all these needs. But if they don’t trust Christ as their Savior and you don’t give the gospel, throw them to understand it and go to heaven you’re not making an effect upon their lives. This is why that is so important. But turn into in your Bible to the book of 1 Corinthians in chapter 15. 1 Corinthians in chapter 15. A couple interesting verses that are mentioned here. And it makes this statement in verse 55 and 56.

But notice what it says in verse 55, oh death, where is thy sting? Oh grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin and the strength of sin is the law. Now it’s maybe hard to understand exactly what he’s talking about here, but this in context is talking about the rapture. You see what nowhere was the rapture? I’m glad I just, looking in verse 51, he says, Behold, I show you a mystery. and it’s a truth that’s hidden in time past, but now revealed for the first time.

I show you a mystery. We shall not all sleep. That means we’re not all going to die. We’re all alive right now. Is that a look out here? All of us are alive. If the Lord comes back while we’re alive, it means we didn’t all die. So there’s a good possibility the Lord could come back in our lifetime and if He does, we’ll be changed in a moment, the twinkling of an eye caught up to meet the Lord near.

That means that we don’t die. That means the grave doesn’t get our bodies. It means that sting of death, it didn’t happen to us. I didn’t die. And that’s the way I’d like to see it. Well, in verse 52, in a moment, the twinkling of an eye, at the last trunk for the trumpet shall son of the dead shall be raised in corruptible and we shall be changed. Talking about the body’s going to be changed. For this corruptible, the body’s must put on incorruption and this mortal, that’s those who are subject to die, still alive, will put on immortality.

So when this happens, when the raptor takes place, the corruptible shall have put on incorruption, mortal, put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass that say and death is swallowed up in victory. That means that the sting of death will be removed at the rapture because we will not die. It’s an experience that some people are going to miss. And I wouldn’t mind that. That’s why he says, oh, grave, where’s thy victory? Like, you didn’t get me, you didn’t get me.

Some people are looking forward to the Lord coming back again, hoping that it will be in our lifetime. But I want you to know that there is a possibility that the Lord could remove the sting of death and we won’t die. And that means that we don’t have to fear it because it didn’t happen to us. Now, everyone in this room knows that there’s element of death is always following us. It’s like there’s a lion on our trail waiting to devour us, to just eat us alive.

And the last great enemy of mankind is death itself. Now, notice in the bowl that I put here, when sin is removed from the body, there will be no death. You see, while I’m alive, If God was to change my body and all my sin that’s in my flesh is gone, removed, then I will not die. But I hope that happens while, you know, I’m still got a few maybe good years left that I can maybe get in on this.

But the Lord may come back and take us out and He may not. And if he doesn’t, then some of us are going to go by the way of the grave. Look at the next statement. Wherefore he saith, when awake thou that sleepeth and arise from the dead, this is to the believers written to the believer, because some believers are asleep dead to the world. It means they have already conceded, I’m not going to serve the Lord, I’m going to do whatever I want to do with my life.

my life and they don’t yield themselves to God. And so they’re severing themselves from the blessings of God, severing themselves from the rewards they could have when they get to heaven. They’re not going to let God use them to pull them out of the flames. They’re not going to make a difference as though they lived their lives and made no effect. Some people will never make an effect. Whenever I die, I I leave this world. The proof of my effect in this life is going to be because did people hear the gospel that I make a difference?

Did I reveal any compassion at all that I make an effect upon people’s lives? Every one of us should try to make an effect upon people’s life. To the lost men, we give them the gospel to those who know the Lord. We want to challenge and then motivate them, exhort them to serve the Lord with all their heart while they can. But look at the part I have in the bowl here. When the power of the gospel has been removed from the purpose of your life, the lost men cannot be affected in a spiritual way by the presence of your life.

In other words, there’s no effect because the gospel is the power of God to whosoever believe it. But if you live, I’m just gonna live a good right life and people will just know and see my good right just life, but you never tell them why you do what you do. A lost man can live as good a life as you can. But the difference is we know how to go to heaven. And that’s why we have to always ask the question, do you know where you’re going when you die?

That’s the one of the most important questions you can ask to anybody. Do you know where you’re going when you die? And if you know the answer, then you want to explain it to people. You want to make a difference. And I said this last Sunday, I… It’s not that people can’t do it, it’s that they won’t do it. So, well, I can’t do that. Yes, you can. You won’t do it.Rogue just can’t talk to people. You can talk to them about everything under the sun, but I can’t talk to them about God.

I can’t talk to them about Jesus Christ. What are you ashamed or afraid? Maybe you don’t believe that there really is a hell. Maybe you don’t believe in heaven either. Maybe you just say, I believe it and you really don’t believe it. What can be a reason that could hold a person back so much that they don’t have any courage whatsoever? The step out in my faith, talk to somebody about the Lord. Talk to them because see, if you remove the gospel out of your life, then you have lost your power.

You’ve lost the power of influence because nothing else is gonna matter. If they die and you live the holy life and they never hear the God that’s still going to hell, you wanna make a difference. Have compassion. A lot of time is because you’re afraid for yourself. You don’t want somebody thinking bad about you. And most of the time when you don’t witness and so forth, generally it’s always about you. you’re afraid of what they think about you. And I don’t think I’m gonna do a good job.

And so you hang back because you’re afraid, fear. And see the thing is the devil fears the man who respects God enough and loves the lost and wants to give him the gospel. The devil’s not gonna fight you living a good clean life and going to church, but he’ll scare you to death with soul in him, talking to somebody about the Lord. Because that’s what we hired the preacher to do. He’s supposed to do that. And guess what? The preacher’s supposed to teach the people to do the work of the ministry.

The shepherd don’t have sheep. It’s the sheep that bears sheep. You’re the sheep. I’m the shepherd. I’m supposed to help you to have sheep as we’re moving right along here. Have you ever had a cat with claws? You ever tried to hold a cat by the tail? What’ll it do? All fours, sent those claws into youadministered. Now if nothing else matters, I can’t like it or not. Dip between a cat and a dog is a dog thinks you’re a god and a cat thinks it’s God.

But you declaw them. And then you don’t have to worry about it. They don’t scratch thequad. They don’t have claws. A Christian without the gospel has been declawed. They can’t make an effect. With the teeth of a rock wiler has been removed. It meansohydrate. no effect. I have no desire for me and a rotweiler to mingle. Eddie had gotten two rotweilers and they were beautiful dogs. Trina came down, this was up in Georgia and we were staying at the Parsons there and she came down and she bought little Melanie and Melanie had called me up on the phone and she says Papa, I’m going to heaven.

Ask me a question. I says, what did Jesus do for you? Not only cause to pay for all my sins, ask me another question. Because Trinity didn’t fed at all the answers. She was only four years old. And I asked her about four or five questions, but she had her just like that. Anyway, she was coming down and they were going to surprise me for Father’s Day. They showed up. And I, I, you know, hug them and all, and then I had to go over to the church and get some things done.

So anyway, she went out into the backyard. We had a fence in the area. And she was going to go down there and get me some blackberries because, you know, I love blackberries. But she was good on there and she wanted to get me some blackberries. Well, I’m over at the office. And all of a sudden I hear Betty screaming. I mean, she’s screaming bloody murder. I ran out of the church and she says, the dogs of God melanin, the dogs of God melanin, two rot-whilers, and she was only four years old.

And I came down towards the parts, and Trina is walking out with melanin, and she is laying there limp, and her arm is almost hanging off. Just very little hanging on her. And you talk about your heart racing and why, and I mean, we put her in a car, and we got her down to the emergency room. And I won’t tell you what she said, Because one day I opened up the door and I saw Melanie and Michael and she was trying to get on a bicycle.

And every time she tried to eat the thing to go, her foot would slip off. And she got some magicf that thing down and she let out a string, a cuss word you would believe, four years old. I will send it across the straight nasses. What did you say? And Michael said, she said, put a little bit of a minute. So the moral of the story is you don’t make Melanie mad. Well now she’s in the room and I think she’s along the mad side of him.

Mary comes again. Anyway, they gave about 90 stitches or something like that. Soda arm got back on. She had a few scars and her face was fine. But most of it, it was just from the claws of that dog. They didn’t try to bite her. It’s just that she was so small and they were just knocking her over and just playing with him. And so they made us do away with both of those dogs, put them asleep. See, the devil wants to remove the most powerful thing we have and that’s the power of theLo of the gospel.

Live any way you want. And yes, I appreciate people who give money so we can do a lot of the things that we do, and scholarships, everything we do. But the purpose behind that, and I hope that’s the purpose in your giving, is so that we can reach more people for the Lord, and we can train more people for the Lord. But it’s not to be a substitute for your personal talking to somebody about the Lord. God has everybody in different places, and there’s people that you can talk to, and it’ll make a difference.

I want you to look down to the next thing. Take your Bible and turn to the book of numbers. I want you to see this, numbers in chapter 30. In the Old Testament, Numbers, chapter 30, and this is on page 206, Numbers, chapter 30, but now I want to just read a couple of these verses here. This is tremendous if we only could apply it today. It’s how to eliminate your wife using the credit card without the husband’s permission.

Look at in verse 1, and Moses speak unto the heads of the tribes concerning the children of Israel saying, This is the thing which the Lord have commanded. If a man, vow a vow unto the Lord, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that preceded out of his mouth. In other words, good old handshake, man’s speak gave his word. Your word supposedly your bond.

Remember when people used to do that, Try that today with the bank. Next statement. He says in verse 3, If a woman also vow a vow unto the Lord and bind herself by a bond, being in her father’s house, in her youth, and her father hear her vow, and her bond, wherewith she hath bound her soul, and her father shall hold his peace at her, then all her vow shall stand in every bond, wherewith she hath bound her soul shall stand because he’s to be surety for it.

He’s got to make sure that’s when the daughter is under daddy’s rule. She can’t just do whatever she wants to do. She makes a vow, makes a pledge, blah, blah, blah. And if daddy heard and then opened his mouth, then he has to make sure she stands good for that. But in verse five, and I know you want to go further, but if her father disallow her in that day. In other words, it means the vow doesn’t stand. It doesn’t have any, you know, as I got right here in your notes, refused to declare valid.

But if her father disallow her in the day that he heareth of not any of her vows or of her bonds, where which she had bound her soul, shall stand and the Lord shall forgive her because her father disallowed her. In other words, She didn’t have to do it because the Father said no. Verse 6, and if she had at all an husband which she vowed or uttered out of her lips where which she bound her soul and her husband heard it and held his peace at her in the day that he heard it, then her vows shall stand and her bonds where which she bound her soul shall stand.

But if her husband did not give her permission to use that credit card, And to make that loan or to buy that dress wouldn’t it be neat if they had to always take, well does your husband know about this? Do you know, Betty has got some of these waitresses around some of these restaurants? When I go on there and if I try to order some bacon or ham, they’ll look at me. Your wife won’t let you have that. That’s the truth.

They say, you can’t have that. I want to order pancakes one day. It’s it. Right toast. You know you can’t have pancakes. And I can’t get away with it. I mean, because they all know she’s informed all of them. And I don’t get any desserts and I don’t get no pies at Philly again. Even though half the church goes on here and just feeds our little face. And it’s all that sweet stuff. And I can’t have that. But anyway, this is just the opposite.

It’s where the the wife has to get permission. from her husband. And if he says no, it’s no. If he says, okay, it’s okay. The reason is important is in verse 8. But if her husband disallowed it on the day that he heard it, then she shall make her vow which she vowed. And that which she uttered with her lips. Wherewith she bound her soul and get these next words. No effect. None effect. And the Lord will forgive And sometimes we might need to get back under the law, I’m just joking, you know I’m joking.

But there’s some things that are just of no effect. When it comes to other things in the Bible, you’ll notice here, and I want you to read this, and that’s in the 33rd Psalm, 33rd Psalm. The Bible gives us a lot of guidelines that can really help us, But sometimes we just don’t care what the Bible says, we do what we want to do anyway, and then get mad at God. In chapter 33, look there in verse 8, verse 8, 33, and verse 8, let all the earth fear the Lord, let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him, For he spake and it was done, he commanded and it stood fast.

The Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen to not. He makeeth the devices of the people of none effect. God can do these things. God can remove the stinger out of people who want to do your harm of what they say or what they may plan on doing. God can protect his children. He also says in verse 11, the counsel of the Lord stand at forever the thoughts of his heart to all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord and the people whom he have chosen for his own inheritance.

The Lord looketh from heaven. He beholdeth all the sons of men. From the place of his habitation, he looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth. Do you think there’s a God in heaven that’s watching you and watching me? and knows of all the opportunities he gives to us. And God may have somebody cross your path that you might be able to be. Now, we don’t catch everybody. Like one day I was in a caravan of about, you know, I don’t know, eight or nine, 10 cars.

And this cup flies down the road, lights on, pulls me over. I said, sir, I know I was probably speeding. I said, but I was behind all of them. He looked at me and said, do you ever go fishing? Yes. He says, do you catch all of them? No. He says, neither do I. That he caught me. And he catches you. The Lord has us here for a reason. We have a purpose. God wants to use us. Are you a new listener to Bibleline?

Do you enjoy the teachings of Dr. Arnold? Well, if you’ve never contacted us before, we want to give you Dr. Arnold’s book, The Gospel Driven Man. Every day we receive many emails from folks who have questions about repentance and salvation, about faith in works, and about how to share the gospel with friends and loved ones. This book, The Gospel Driven Man, covers all those topics, and we want all new listeners of Bibleline to receive a free copy. There’s no obligation, no donation necessary, simply call us at 1-800-576-3771 or write to us and request your free copy of The Gospel Driven Man.

The mailing address is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Again, don’t forget to include your mailing address, and God bless you, and thank you for listening to Bibleline. Thanks for joining us on Bibleline. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. And now a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will sound and we will be changed. Cada can meet the Lord in the air.

So live today and every day. Believing that the Lord is coming soon, just keep looking up. Enough.