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Bibleline 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, Florida. 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 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 message will be a blessing to you and your family.

Everybody knows the song Jesus loves me. Oh sure. This is one Jesus loves me for seniors. Jesus loves me this I know, though my hair is white as snow. Though my sight is growing dim, still he bids me trust in him. Though my steps are also slow with my hand and his, I’ll go. On through life, let come what may, he’ll be there to lead the way. Pretty good so far, huh? Yeah, yeah. When the nights are dark and long, in my heart, he puts a song.

telling me in words so clear have no fear for I am near. When my work on earth is done and life’s victories have been won, he will take me home above, then I’ll understand his love. I love Jesus, does he know? Have I ever told him so? Jesus loves to hear me say that I love him every day. Yes, Jesus loves me. Yes, Jesus loves me. Yes, Jesus loves me. The Bible still tells me so. I knew you’d like that.

Turn in your Bible to the book of Luke in chapter 18. Luke chapter 18. There’s times when you wonder whether or not just what is faith. Now we know that faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. So we read the Word of God and study the Word of God so that our faith can grow. And faith is simply believing what God said. Believing that what He promised, He will perform. It’s so easy to say that, isn’t it?

I have faith in the Lord. And then we worry, worry, worry, worry, worry. Well, have you ever had to turn things over to the Lord and let God work it out? You know, like sending a daughter off the Bible college and have to trust the Lord to take care of that poor little And you wonder whether or not have you taught her enough to be able to stand between her and the Lord and against the world. And well, sometimes you have to see if that training pays off.

Can they stand on their own? Sometimes they fail, sometimes they totally succeed and you stand back and you have to watch and wait. And that’s the trying time. And they go to school and so on. And when you have a little kid that’s got to go to K4 or K5, and they scream all the way there, they scream before you leave them there. And you got to walk away and get in your car and leave a mirror and they’re just crying bloody murder.

And you wonder whether or not now I can’t stand it. It’s not so much that the kid can, that the parents can’t stand it. But sometimes we wonder whether or not, you don’t love me, you don’t love me. I remember when little Eddie, when I used to leave the house, cry if I didn’t kiss him by. It wasn’t long before he cried if I did. And so you’ve got times in your life where you have to grow up to.

You have to learn how to trust the Lord. And sometimes God takes things away from us so that we are forced to go to the Lord. It’s interesting that he uses a wonderful illustration here in the scripture, two of them really. And I want you to look there in chapter 18 and verse 1, where he says, and he spake a parable unto them to this end. That men ought always to pray not to faint.” Now we know when we read over there in the book of Hebrews when it says not to faint.

And the reason God has to chasten some of his children because it says faint not. Faint not. But some people do faint. To me, they quit. They lose heart. They lose the dream. They lose vision. They just stop. And so sometimes God has to kind of put some sharp sticks in the little nest and force you to get out of that nest. And we call it today, getting outside of our comfort zone. There’s areas of our life where we just feel so comfortable and don’t rock the boat.

Don’t do it. anything, leave me alone. I’m fine the way I am. But you don’t know it, but you didn’t walk into a grave and all you got to do is just kick in the dirt. You’ve already been buried. You’re already dead. And sometimes He says in the Scriptures, to wake up, come alive. You’re not dead yet because you’re still here. Like I said before, if you’ve got a pulse, you’ve got a purpose. But He says here in this birth.

Men are always to pray not to fame. So if you was to pray, does that mean that you shouldn’t faint? That’s what I would get out of this birth. Men are always to pray not to fame. The reason people faint, they lose heart, they lose vision is because they don’t pray to God. They don’t talk to the Lord. And so sometimes God has to send you something really hard and difficult to deal with, So it forces you to pray to the Lord.

If there’s anything God wants, He wants His children to talk to Him. And you’d be surprised what God does to get you and I to come and talk to Him. So it’s an important thing. We need to talk to the Lord. Now, look what He says. Saying, there was in a city, a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man. Sound like a pretty good judge. but he was an unjust judge, but he was a judge. I don’t know if he was a believing judge, but he didn’t fear God and he didn’t fear man either.

So he says here in verse 3, and there was a widow in that city and she came unto him saying, avenge me of mine adversaries. So somebody’s done her wrong, she doesn’t have a husband, she’s having to take matters into her own hands and somebody ought to get it, whatever it is. Now I would have loved them known to this, what was the problem. But then it says in verse four, and he would not for a while, but afterwards, he said within himself, though I fear not God nor regard man, yet because this widow trouble with me.

I will avenge her less by her and you are not like her continual coming, She weary me. Now, that’s a pretty good. This one guy said, you know, my wife is not a nag, but she does go to the blacksmith shop to get her shoes. Well, you know, you’ve got to be careful how you say things. And here is a woman that would not let go. She was like a pit bull. She knew what she she wanted and she was not going to quit.

And she kept on until she just about worried the judge. And he was an unjust judge. But he said to himself, I got to do what this woman once done, or she’s never going to stop. He said, what’s this got to do? What’s the story about? It’s about verse one. Me and I always to pray. It means that you don’t stop. You don’t quit. You don’t let go. Because if you do, then you might get dishearted, but what is praying?

I wrote it down to my notes. Praying is a sign of faith. The reason you pray is because you believe your prayer is gonna do something with God. So sometimes, you know, it changes not God, but prayer changes you, but God is interested in one thing from you, and that’s your faith. Can God see His children? Yes. Can God see the faith that His children have? Yes. That’s how we were saved. Because you see, we weren’t saved by our works.

We’re saved just by our faith. So then God must be able to see faith. And God says, and I want you to see this in verse eight. He said, I tell you that He will avenge them speedily, nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth? And Christ coming back again goes back to the previous chapter. He just spent that whole chapter, at least half of the chapter, talking about the son of man is coming back.

And he talks to him about how it’s going to be. See there in verse 26 of chapter 18 or 17. And as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it also be in the days of the Son of man. They eat, they drink, they married wives, they were given in Mary’s until the day that Noah entered into the yard, the flood came destroyed the mall. Like was all it was in the days of love. They didn’t eat and they drained, they bought and they sold, they planted, they built it.

But the same day that light went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed. But the question is, will he find faith for when he comes? And when he’s talking about finding faith, he’s talking about, will there be anybody praying to him? Does anybody care what God thinks about anything? Do you ever think, what does God want for my life?

Or we always just pray when there’s something we want for our life? Or do you say, well, I don’t need God right now because everything is fine? Do you know when everything is fine is one of the times when you need to be most careful? Because that’s when it’s easier to fall. When everything is fine, I don’t need God. I don’t need to pray now. And yet so God has to send you some trouble to get you to do it.

But what if you were to stay and keep praying and talking to the Lord and realizing that even in good times, you still need to do the will of God? What is it that God wants you to do? Maybe you got a lot of money. Okay, now you still need to pray. But what does God want you to do with it? You should make it right and save it right and spend it right and invest it right. right. You still got to do right.

Everybody has to do right. So he goes down through there and he talks about, hey, I’m coming back. I’m coming back. And so some will be taken and some will not be taken. But this is talking about when he comes back at the end of the tribulation period. Now let’s get back over there to this little story that he’s telling. So he says in verse 6, and the Lord said, here what the unjust judge said, and shall not God avenge his own elect, his children, which cry day and night under him, though he bear long with them.

You see, during the tribulation period, it’s going to be very, very bad. And there’s going to be a lot of persecution upon the children of Israel. going to try to totally destroy the nation of Israel. Well, Jesus is going to come back because He hears their cries. He hears their prayers. But you see, whenever He sent Moses down into Egypt, it was because the Lord had endured a long time of their crying unto him. And he says, I hear the voice of my people.

And so he sent Moses, said, tell Pharaoh, let my people go. But it’s because they cried on the God and he heard their plea. Well, he did it for them and toward the end of the tree relation period, if God doesn’t intervene, say the Jewish people will be wiped off the face of the earth. But Christ comes back, they see him and they believe on him. And so Israel is born in a day, saved in a day. Nothing in the book of Romans in chapter 11.

Now look what he says here. He says in verse 8, I tell you that he will have avenged him speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Men come at shall he find faith on the earth. You see, Israel believes on him once he comes, and they see the scars in his hands and in his feet. And they said, where did you get those? And according to the book of Zechariah 13, he says, when I came in the house of my friends, and that’s when it happened.

He got him the first time he came, and then they believed on him. But you see, is there people that even today really have a lot of confidence in faith in God and ask God for things? It’s important that you do it. So then he’s teaching him that men are always to pray all the time. Good times, bad times. When you have, when you don’t have, but always pray. And then he makes this statement. He said, let me tell you another story.

So look there now in verse 9. So in verse 9, he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves. So now there’s people who trust in themselves that they are righteous. Have you ever heard of anybody that does something like that? There’s people who go to all kinds of churches, there’s all kinds of preachers, and they trust that they’re good enough to go. They trust in themselves that they are righteous. They’re good enough to get to go. But the Bible teaches something totally contrary that no man can trust in himself for his righteousness.

So Bien Denny gives us an illustration of what he’s talking about. Because see, you’re not going to trust Christ as your Savior. If you believe, you can save yourself. So you’re not going to put your faith in Christ. You’re going to put your faith in yourself. And that’s why a lot of people think that, you know, if I go to church and if I live good and I do all these good things, that’s good enough. So they’re putting their faith in their performance.

How they’re going to live. So Jesus addresses this. But look how simple and clear He is. Why anybody would think they can get to heaven by883r good works is beyond me. Look what He says. He spake this parable unto certain which trusted in himself. Now he’s going to tell a story about two people, but the two people are not the ones that were certain and trusting in himself. It was people that he knew that were there that trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and so he’s addressing those certain people.

And he says that they were righteous and despised others. always remember, if you trust in your righteousness because you’re so good you have to compare it with somebody. Now if you trust in your own righteousness that you’re so good you’re not going to compare yourself with the Lord. So you must compare yourself with someone else, someone who is not doing as much as you. I’m better than her or him. I go to church more than they do. I give more than they do and I pray more than they do and I and I and I and I because you see when you are exalting yourself you must have to degrade somebody else and put somebody else down and despise them.

So does God in heaven see all of this? Of course he sees it all. Jesus is telling the story and he’s talking about faith. What do you believe? They believed that they were righteous in themselves. So he says here in verse 10, two men went up into the temple to pray. The one of Pharisee, the other one is a publican. Now what’s a publican? That’s a tax collector. Works for the Roman government but Jewish and so they would take the money and pay taxes to the federal government.

So they would tax collectors. And so if you anybody you despised, it was a tax collector. Isn’t it about the way it is today? I mean, how many people really are in love with the IRS? But you’ve got to pay taxes. So somebody’s got to collect them. Whoa, true to the man that does. But it has nothing to do with salvation or whatever. But he says, there’s two men, a Pharisee and a publican. Then he says, verse 11, the Pharisee stood and he prayed.

But who did he pray to? He didn’t pray to God. It says that he prayed to himself, a with himself. And God, I think thee, but he’s not talking to God, he’s talking to himself to hear himself because God despises this kind of a prayer. But there’s God here, God can hear everything that everybody says. But now look how exalted this self-righteous Pharisee is. He thinks he is so much better. And look how good he good he too shoots.

He is. If anybody goes to heaven, surely he ought to go to heaven. So he says, the Pharisee stood and he prayed thus with himself, God I thank thee, that I am not as other men are. Now isn’t that a wonderful prayer? I’m so glad I’m not bad like everybody else. Well you may be glad that you’re not like everybody else but to exalt yourself and think you’re so much better than everybody. Like God, see doesn’t appreciate it because he thought he was righteous in himself and that he was justified before God because of all his good deeds and that’s not the case.

So he says here, I think thee that I am not as other men are extortioners, unjust, well because you see the publican probably had to use a little extortion, getting taxes out of people because a lot of times people don’t want to pay them and they usually have some time that few extra go with them and they have to shake them down and shake down businesses and no kind of like the mafia does. Have you ever heard of the mafia?

Yeah. But look what he says here. He says, unjust adulterers, boy, I’m not, I’m glad I’m not like them. He says, and even as this publican, as this, so they were there at the same time. And look how much better I am than him. Now generally, if they went to the temple, they weren’t the only two there. There’s probably the place could have been packed. and for a Pharisee to exalt himself in front of others so that others can hear how good and righteous they are and how much better they are than somebody else.

But anyway he says… In verse 12, I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess, the tithes of the 10th, and in some cases they had to give as much as 35%. But he said, I give tithes of all that I possess. And then the public and the old tax collector standing a far off would not lift up so much as his eyes and the heaven. But smote upon his breast saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

In other words, what he’s saying would be merciful. I’m not worthy. That means I am not worthy. I’m not good enough. I am a sinner. I do not qualify. I am not a just man. I am not good to go. So that’s what he was saying. But the Lord sees into the heart of every individual. God be merciful to me a sinner. Verse 14, I tell you, this man, the publican, went down to his house and you ought to underline that word, justified, rather than the other one.

But now he’s talking to people that should see and should understand this. But not everybody sees, not everybody understands what Christ is saying. But he makes a statement here for everyone that exalted himself shall be abased and he that hummed with himself shall be exalted. So does God want people to pray? Yeah. Did he want these people to pray? Oh, yeah. But does everybody pray according to the will of God? No. So God says, I want you to pray because, as he says in verse one, men ought always to pray.

So we have an example of a woman praying and we have an example of two men praying and some good, some bad. But the thing is, when he says up here, always to pray, then he talks about the woman, yes, prayed, but it was her continual coming that did the job. It’s talking to the Lord means to continually keep coming to the Lord. Keep praying, keep asking, keep talking to Him and keep believing. You don’t know at what point God will answer your request.

I don’t know all the things there is to deal with this thing about prayer, but I know that there’s a God in heaven that answers prayer. For example, I did this in Ranch One Night, and I had a curtain up there with a big old board. Like we got out there in the fellowship hall, those things were on wheels like a little divider, and I had somebody on the other side, not already done chose a few items. And I said, we can’t tell if anybody’s on the other side, Because wherever there was it, you couldn’t tell if somebody’s on the other side.

I said, but I believe there’s somebody on the other side there. And so I’m going to ask whoever’s on the other side, and I said, the Lord. And we’re going to ask God to answer my prayer. So I said, Lord, give me a tennis shoe. Phew, here comes a tennis shoe, lands right beside me. Then I asked the Lord for a golf ball. Come to God’s bone. And I don’t know about four or five things that I had. And here comes flying over the thing.

I says, now, every time I ask for something and it comes over that thing, I says, after a while you become convinced there is somebody on the other side. I says, but most people never ask God for anything. So they never really know. They just say, Lord bless me. Give me things. nothing in particular so that if they don’t get it, it won’t be because well I didn’t ask specifically for that. But would you go to the grocery store, walk up to the manager, say I need some groceries?

He says, there’s shelves. Give what you want. So you go give what you want. God is on the other side just because you can’t see God. After all these years that you’ve been saved, are you convinced? There’s somebody on the other side that answers your prayers. And if you’re not, it’s sometimes because you have an ask specifically to God for something you really need. He says you have not because you ask not. Well why didn’t I get a golf ball?

God says you didn’t ask. Well, didn’t you know I wanted it? He said you have not because you asked not. Well, that’s what he said. And then he also says in James chapter one, a double-minded man, give me a golf ball. Ukraines that, give me a football. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, beach ball. No, no, no, no, no. God said, you’re not gonna get anything. I mean, that’s the book. Because you asked him if you’re double-minded.

He says, let that man. and not think he shall receive anything. And so a lot of people may know, yeah, I believe there’s God on the other side, but they never pray and they never go to God. And so they miss out. Now let me give you one last thought here. He makes a statement in verse 15 about a little kid, a little bitty kid in verse 15, and they brought unto him infants. This is an infant that he would touch them, but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them.

But Jesus called unto them and he says, suffer little children to come unto me. It means permit allow the little children to come unto me. And forbid them not for off such is the kingdom of God. And you’ll read in quite a few places, also over there in Luke chapter 17, that’s mentioned there in verse 21. When he talks about the kingdom of God is within you. In other words, the new birth is on the inside. The new birth is a spiritual birth.

The new birth is like a little child being born, a little child. And it’s that you become as a little child. It means as the faith of a little child. The new birth is something that you believe God for. It’s notinished because you stand in the temple and you exalt yourself because I did this and this and this and this and this and this. No, it’s going to be like the old tax collector. I am unworthy. And by faith alone, he went down to his house justifying.

So we can understand there’s teaching that God put, and all these is right there in the same chapter. And so what’s on the end? And it’s simple, it’s clear. And so he says in verse 17, “‘Verily, verily I send you, whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall know I is into therein.'” He says the same thing in John chapter 3. Unless you are born again, you cannot see the kingdom of God. You can’t enter into the kingdom God.

Unless you’ve been born again, like a little child. And naked name is hot, can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time to do his mother’s womb to be born? It’s a spiritual birth, and it’s on the inside. That’s pretty shallow. Father, we thank you so much for your word. Thank you for blessing this and giving such clarity in your word about things that are sometimes so complicated. Father, you say for us to always pray, always pray, less RELEVED, we lose heart, we Naue’s vision.

And Father, we just pray Your will be done. Thank you for this ministry and all you’ve done for us. Christ’s name, amen. You’ve been listening to Bibleline, a teaching ministry of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida with Dr. Ralph Arnold. We pray that you are blessed by today’s message. If you have enjoyed our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ. You can reach Bibleline and pledge your support to keep us on the air in your area by dialing tool free, 1-800-576-3771.

That’s 1-800-576-3771. To listen to today’s message again or to obtain a free download of any of our Bibleline programs, just go to our homepage at BibleLineMinistries.org and click on the radio broadcast link. If you You are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Our Sunday morning services begin at 10-30 and at 6 o’clock on Sunday evening. Live broadcast of our services may be seen by clicking on the Calvary Community Church link at BibleLineMinistries.org.

Thanks for joining us on Bibleline and now a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. friend, one day it will happen, the trumpet will sound, and we will be changed. Caught up to meet the Lord in the air. So live today and every day, believing that the Lord is coming soon and just keep looking up.