Hi, I'm Pastor Darrell Bailey of People's Valley Baptist Church. I want to welcome you to come and be with us at 68 Ledford Lane, Cartersville, Georgia. Our hope is that through God's word of truth that we can build up the kingdom of God into all of our lives. Now, as we get ready to go into the wonderful word of God. As we look at the scriptures of Matthew chapter 12, Matthew chapter 12 verses 43 through 45. And then there is a similar scripture in Luke chapter 11 verses 24 through 26. Tonight, as we look at October the 16th, 2022, the 21st of Tishri, 5783 of the Hebrew calendar. Hi, I'm Pastor Darrell Bailey. Thank you for tuning us in tonight. And as we look at the The Danger Zone of an Empty Soul. The Danger Zone of an Empty Soul. This deals with how to demon-proof your life. You know, let's have us a word of prayer. Father, we come to you in a time of service to bring everything that we have before you, to give you all the glory and the honor of every breath that's about us. Lord, thank you for giving us the ability to work and have the opportunity to earn. Father, your thoughtfulness, your generosity toward us at all times, and Lord, we thank you for our desire to participate in an effort to win the world to faith in your Son, Jesus Christ. Continue to bless our church with these gifts of the relief of suffering to spread the gospel, and Lord, to continue to go forward to rescue those that are in need. In Jesus' mighty name, amen. A little boy, he stood outside and he yelled loudly from the back door, mom, hey mom. And his mother replied, stop yelling across this house. If you want to talk to me, you need to walk in here right where I am. And so the little boy tried again, but to no avail. Finally, he came inside and he walked across the living room and he stood directly in front of his mom who was sitting on the sofa. And he said in a very calm voice, Mom, where is the garden hose? I stepped in dog poop. You know, there are some things that you just don't want to bring into your house. Dog poop is probably one of those things. So are demons. Now, when we look at the word of God, each and every one of us, the Bible says in Matthew chapter 12, verse 43, When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places seeking rest and finding none. He said in verse 44, then he said, I will return into my house from whence I came out, and when he has come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. He goes on, he says in verse 45, then goeth he and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in, dwell there, and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also under this wicked generation. In verse 43, We see the punishment of evil spirits because he said when an evil spirit goes out of a person it travels over dry country looking for a place to rest and it can't find one. We see also the possession of evil spirits in verse 44. because it told us, it says to himself, I will go back to my house. And so it goes back and it finds the house empty, clean, and all fixed up. And then we see in verse 45, the permanency of evil spirits, because he said in verse 44, excuse me, verse 45. He says, then it goes out and brings along seven other spirits, even worse than itself, and they come and live there, so when it is all over, that person is in worse shape than at the beginning. This is what will happen to the evil people of this day. And so we see the punishment of evil spirits, the possession of evil spirits, and the permanency of evil spirits, each and every one of us as we go through life. We begin to realize some of the things that God is working on in our life, amen? There was a new sheriff that was elected at a time when the community was being plagued by a lot of burglaries, and he encouraged a neighborhood watch program, and he asked the people of the community to be on the lookout for the suspicious-looking strangers. The sheriff encouraged neighbors to inform those near to him when they would be absent so that he could be on an alert for any suspicious activity during their absence. And at the end of one year, there was a significant decrease in the number of burglaries in that part of the country. You know, an empty house is in greater danger than a house fully occupied. And so each and every one of us, when we look and begin to realize, we see the danger zone of an empty soul. Because Jesus used these facts about empty houses to illustrate a greater truth, the danger of having an empty soul. Jesus was speaking to his nation, to his religious leaders. The evil spirit of idolatry had been cast out of the lives of the people of Israel, and as a result of the pain of the exile, never again was the nation of Israel tempted by the worship of idols. At the same time, the people of Israel had neglected to let the true God of love grace, forgiveness, and helpfulness enter into their hearts and lives. You know, consequently, they possessed an empty soul. The nation and the people were experiencing the results of being empty of God and His goodwill for their lives. Their religion was empty in that it was full of negatives and it lacked involvement in outreach ministries. Augustine is quoted as saying, and I quote, thou hast made us for thyself and our souls are restless until they find their rest in thee, unquote. One can participate in religious activities and yet have an empty soul in terms of being filled with God and his goodness. This parable of the empty house should cause every one of us to tremble. It is possible that some of us have not let God come in to fill our lives in such a manner as to keep the evil spirits away. And this can happen without people being aware of it. You know, as we look and we realize that Jesus is speaking symbolically here as well as literally. He's talking about more than demonology. He's also talking about the futility of attempting to clean your life without filling it first with the presence of God. It just doesn't work. Did you know that the overwhelming majority of people who lose weight gain it all back and then some? Do you know why that is? It's because most people see weight loss as a short-term project. And when they drop a few pounds, they go back to their old destructive eating habits. The people that are able to lose weight and to keep it off are not the people who go on a 30-day banana diet. but the people who make permanent changes to their eating habits. And as a result, they find themselves not only thinner, but healthier for the rest of their lives. It's the same way with holiness and with experiencing the fullness of God in your life. It's not about a short-term diet. It's about long-term life transformation. And the key to strength tonight is the same key for strength tomorrow and for the rest of your life. God's mercy, God's grace, God's Holy Spirit at work, daily prayer, daily worship, daily Bible study, and so on. You don't clean yourself up so that you can give your life to Him. You, listen, you give your life to Him so that He can clean you up. Trying to do it in your own strength, by your own rules, guarantees that you're only gonna get further and further from the goal that you'll miss out completely on the opportunity to experience his power. Now how do you demon-proof your life? Well, first of all, we need to realize the reality of demons. They're real. Jesus showed us that. They're real. We also secondly need to acknowledge the hostility of demons. Demons are our enemies. Listen, I'm going to tell you, I don't care if you go any other way, but the way of the cross, you're going the wrong way. You're going in a way of darkness. We've got to acknowledge the hostility of demons. They're out to destroy your family. They're out to destroy your marriage. They're out to destroy your witness and your testimony. And thirdly, not only as we begin to realize the reality of demons, we acknowledge the hostility of demons, but we align with the conqueror of demons by aligning ourselves with Jesus in salvation. If you are empty and you don't have salvation in your life, listen, that's the starting point. Once we enter into Jesus Christ, thank God and the Holy Spirit enters us, we have everything we need to take our stand against the devil and all the demons of hell. Just because we have everything we need to take our stand against the devil and his demons, it doesn't necessarily mean that we're always going to come up victorious unless we have salvation first in our life when we step out on faith and take God at His word. What we do by accepting God's gracious offer of salvation through Jesus Christ, amen, is every one of us are getting ourselves in a position to be able to know that we've got to be able to trust Jesus with everything about us, amen. The Jewish religious leaders of Jesus' day were great at emphasizing all of the negative. I run into so many negative people, they can suck all the air out of the room when they come in. Their favorite verses began with, thou shalt not. They have many followers who take great satisfaction in all of the negative goodness. Having become all of the self-righteous as these religious Jewish leaders of Jesus' day were, they speak loud and clear about what they have not done. And Jesus would assert that negative goodness is not sufficient. And so in our text, we see that Jesus was describing the spiritual condition of the generation of His day. Once, as He said in Matthew chapter 12, verses 38 and 39, He described an evil and adulterous generation. One that would be condemned by the Ninevites and the Queen of Sheba in the Day of Judgment that he said in Matthew chapter 12 verses 41 and 42, amen. But one that he now describes as this wicked generation that he said in Matthew chapter 12 verse 45 that he said, but he answered and said to the one who told him, who is my mother? He said, that he's telling us, he said in Matthew 12, 45, who is my mother, who is my brothers? And he stretched out his hand toward his disciples and said, here is my brother, my disciples. I thank God each and every one of us when we look at life and begin to realize that God is trying to do a great thing. I'm reading in the wrong verse. Let me back up to verse 45 like I said, amen. In verse 45 he said, then he goes and he takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of that man is worse than the first, so shall it also be," listen, with this wicked generation. That's what he's talking about, this wicked generation. Using the example of demon possession, Jesus warned that it's not enough to go through an initial period of repentance and removal of sin. Unless reformation continues and something positive is put in place, the end might prove worst than the beginning, he said. And so, each and every one of us, we look and we begin to realize that such has been the case with the Jews of Jesus' day. Many had repented at the preaching of John the Baptist in Matthew chapter 3, verses 5 and 6, and yet they eventually rejected Jesus and called for his crucifixion. Crucifying, crucifying. For them, the last state was truly worse than the first, as I read in Matthew chapter 12, verse 45, amen. So shall it also be with this wicked generation. And so we begin to realize that as he's talking about this, there's an important lesson to be gleaned that applies to the Christians, amen, today, amen. Because the removal of the spirit in verse 43, where that unclean spirit has gone out of a man, the removal of that unclean spirit here is not a result of divine exercising, but simply the will of the evil spirit. It's like Satan leaving Christ. And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from him for a season in Luke chapter 4 verse 13. Evil temptation, which seems at times to have such a grip on a person, will sometimes leave for a season. And the person no longer has such a propensity to do evil. The person often mistakes the lack of desire to do evil as a newfound strength or gives credit to other natural means. And for the lack of that strong desire, when all that has happened is that the evil spirit has left for a season. But I'm going to tell you the roving of that spirit. The Bible says that he walketh through dry places seeking rest and findeth none. Evil spirits have no rest unless they're doing mischief. They're not content unless they're causing harm. And so we see the return of that spirit in verse 44. Cause he then he said I will return into my house from whence I came out and whence he has come he finded that empty swept and garnished Temptation will return and the evil spirit and evil desire eventually returns and too often He finds a person who is all fixed up empty swept garnished But without anything dwelling in his heart to counter that evil and so that evil spirit moves back in again Empty is the problem If a person has filled his heart with the Holy Spirit, that evil spirit will not be able to return. Negative action is not good enough. Positive action is also needed. We do not separate from the world and do nothing else. We separate from the world so that we can give ourselves more to the Lord. And so, we see the danger zone of an empty soul. The danger zone of an empty soul. Our heart is like a home and it can reside things that produce more harm. Amen. That he tells us in Matthew chapter 15. Amen. Verse 19 that he's telling us about. Amen. You know what? There is no neutrality. Beware of an empty life. It's standing invitation for satan to go to work because in the spiritual war being waged today you cannot be neutral you are either for him or you're against him amen but i thank god in matthew chapter 15 verse 19 that the bible tells us this amen let me get my bible over there he says listen he says well out of the heart proceedeth evil thoughts murders adulteries fornications thefts fault witness blasphemies amen and so our heart is like a home but it can also be the source for much good because I thank God in Matthew chapter 12 verse 35 that the Bible tells us a good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things and so every one of us when we come to Christ listen our home is cleansed for our heart is cleansed amen i thank god according to hebrews 10 22 and acts chapter 15 verses 8 and 9 our conscience is purged from dead works to serve god according to hebrews 9 14 and so we are expected to fill our home, our soul, praise God. God gives us His Spirit to dwell in our hearts in Galatians 4, 6. And through faith, Christ Himself is to dwell in our hearts as Ephesians 3, 17 tells us. What happens when we don't fill our home? Remember the maxim, because nature abhors a vacuum. If we do not make the effort to fill our home with good things, then evil things are likely to return, and with a vengeance. Consider the example of the Corinthians. They had been washed, sanctified, and justified in 1 Corinthians 6, verse 11, and yet later they were engaged in sinful conduct once again in 2 Corinthians 12, verses 20 and 21. Consider the example of the false teachers that are mentioned by Peter that they had been Bought by the Lord and escaped the pollutions of the world through Jesus Christ in 2nd Peter chapter 2 verses 1 in verse 20 But they had become entangled again and in 2nd Peter chapter 2 verse 20 they had a problem and so For them the latter end is worse for them than the beginning that as I look over in 2nd Peter chapter 2 2nd Peter chapter 2 verses 20 21 and 22 a man give me just a minute to get over there hallelujah praise the name of Jesus as we turn the pages over into 2nd Peter chapter 2 verse 20 2nd Peter chapter 2 verse 20 a man and the Bible tells us he says pages are sticking together. He says, For if after they have accepted the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteous than having known the way of having having known it to turn from the holy commandment delivered them but it has happened to them according to the true proverb a dog returns to his own vomit and a sow having washed to her wallowing in the mire. Oh man, I'll tell you how things can become worse than at first and in the case of the false teachers they had forsaken the right way in 2 Peter chapter 2 verse 15 Oh, man, how sad it is that the Bible says in 2 Peter 2, verse 15, that it says, they had forsaken the right way and gone astray, falling the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness. Eyes full of adultery, hearts trained in covenants. Oh, my goodness. They become cursed children and brute beasts. They even denied the Lord that bought them. And in our case, our hearts can become hardened. Hebrews chapter 3 verses 12 and 13 that he tells us about this a man Hebrews Chapter 3 a man listen with me now Hebrews chapter 3 that he tells us about this in verses 12 and 13 that he says listen beware brethren lest there be a in any of you an evil heart of unbelieving and departing from the living God, but exhort one another daily while it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin." Before the gospel had touched our hearts, moving us to repentance. Listen, I'm going to tell you, but once hardened, our hearts might not be willing to listen. We can become so hardened through willful sin that we trample the Son of God underfoot. Count the blood of the covenant of a covenant of a common thing. Insult the spirit of grace. Boy, you better look out. Cause Hebrews chapter 10 verse 26. Hebrews, chapter 10. Listen, follow along with me in your Bible, amen. Hebrews, chapter 10, verse 26. He says, He goes on. In verse 28, anyone who has rejected Moses' law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. And lastly, verse 29, of how much worse punishment do you suppose will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a coming thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? Man, we could even reach to the point back where it become impossible to be renewed again to repentance. Where we were crucifying again the Son of God and putting the open shame in Hebrews chapter 6 verses 4-5 and 6. In such a case, how true the statement, the last state of that man or woman is worst than the first. And so how important it is then that we do not let the home of our heart remain empty and thus invite worldly things to take up residence. Because to avoid this, here's something to think on. We've got to fill the home of your heart. You've got to feel the home of your heart, amen. And I'm glad that each and every one of us, the recruiting of the spirit, he says, then he goeth, then goeth he and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, that they enter in and dwell therein. The last state of that man is worse than the first. When there's no positive reformation in a person, return and temptation will wreak havoc on that person. The desire to do evil is strong and will yield to worse evil than before. And I'm glad every one of us as we begin to realize in principle fill in the home of your heart We've got to sanctify the Lord God in your heart according to first Peter chapter 3 verse 15 According to first Peter turn over there with me if you would just for a minute look with me in first Peter chapter 3 verse 1 Peter chapter 3 verse 15 the Bible tells us but sanctify the Lord God in your heart and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you with meekness and fear having a good conscience that when they defame you as evildoers those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed for it is better If it is the will of God to suffer for doing good, then for doing evil. And so in principle, sanctify the Lord God in your heart. A word sanctify, it means to set apart. You set apart, set a special place in your heart for God as the ruler of your life. Be selective as what goes on in your mind. Set your mind on things above, Colossians 3, verses 1 and 2. Let the word of God dwell in your riches, as he says in Colossians 3, 16. Follow the example of David in Psalms 101 verses 3 and 4 that he tells us about, amen. Psalms 101, Psalms 101, amen, that he tells us about in verses 3 and 4 that he says, I will set nothing wicked before my eyes. I hate the work of those who fall away. It shall not cling to me. Verse 4, a perverse heart shall depart from me and I will not know wickedness. You know what? Think upon the things that are good and wholesome in Philippians 4a that he tells us about. Each and every one of us. Remember the transformation of character begins with renewing the mind of Romans chapter 12 verses 1 and 2, amen. Romans chapter 12 verses 1 and 2 that he tells us about this. How that we are able to transform our character by the renewing of our mind in Romans chapter 12. verses one and two. I beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies to live in sacrifice, wholly acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service, and do not, listen, and do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. I'm glad, every one of us. And so, we've got the principles of renewing our mind, but in practice, utilize every opportunity to study God's Word in 1 Peter that he tells us in chapter 2. Verses one and two that he tells us this therefore laying aside all malice all deceit hypocrisy Envy and all evil speaking as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby I thank God listen every one of us as we attend the services of church, participate in the Bible study programs that are offered, read your Bible daily as Psalms chapter 1 verses 1 through 6 tells every one of us as a psalmist, amen, in the word of God, every one of us as we go forward, as the psalmist tells us, Psalms chapter 1 verses 1 through 6. He's talking about the blessing, amen, and how there's a perishing, but he says blessed is the man. who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and his law he mediates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its seasons, whose leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he does shall prosper." Listen, he goes on in verse 4, And he's telling us, the ungodly are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore, the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish. And so, I'm glad we got to read our Bibles daily. Fill our hearts with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Praise God. Let the Word of God dwell in you richly. Allow yourself to be filled with the Spirit of God in Ephesians 5 verses 18 and 19. Sing at church, at home, in your car. Sing along with the others. Let your mind dwell on the things that are worthy of praise and virtue. Amen. Praise God. Be selective about what you watch on television, in the movies. Choose your books. Choose your magazines, etc. carefully. Choose your friends carefully, hallelujah, as Paul said in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verse 33. And they will either help you to be strong or they will hinder your efforts. In Proverbs 13, 20, we cannot have communion with darkness and expect the light of God to dwell in us. What's the condition of your home or your heart? Are you filling your home with the things that are good? I'm going to tell you something, each and every one of us, there's the danger zone of an empty soul. If not, then your heart becomes in a vogue for every evil thing and the condition of your heart may even become seven times worse than before. Have you experienced the initial cleansing of your home? I'm talking about your heart. Have you been cleansed by the blood of Jesus so that you're washed and justified and sanctified? If so, hallelujah! But don't be deceived into thinking that you do not need to be concerned about filling that dwelling with the presence of God, all that is good. You folks during the pandemic that have been at home, some can't come back. But you, those of you that can come back, you better get back in the house of God or you better be dwelling with the Spirit of God and in the presence of God with the family of God in relationship. Hallelujah. If you've never been cleansed by the blood of Christ, then may these words spoken to Paul at his conversion move you to respond. Because in Acts 22 verse 16, And now, why are you waiting? Arise, be baptized, and wash away your sin, calling on the name of Jesus Christ. Every one of us, when we realize that there is a thing that we can do that we can trust the Lord in the areas of our life. Satan has limitations. Satan's not omnipresent. He gets around a lot, but he cannot be in every place at the same time. He's limited to one place at a time, and there's only one devil, but he has many helpers or demons. So Satan is not omniscient. Satan is not omnipotent, all-knowing and all-powerful. He has more power than human beings, but his power is limited by the power of God. How do we overcome Satan? We can overcome him by the blood of the Lamb, lost person. You need to be able to realize that the best thing that can happen in your life is to be able, in your practice and in your principles, feel the home of your heart. Amen? And I thank God, because if you don't, things can become worse than they were before. Things can become worse than they were at the very first if you don't do that. And so, we are expected to fill our home, amen. When we come to Christ, our home is cleansed, and our heart is like a home, the danger zone of an empty soul. Every one of us, when we begin to realize that it's very important that we do that, And so how do we overcome Satan with the blood of lamb, the word of our testimony, the love for Jesus more than for our own selves? We can overcome by using the whole armor of God in Ephesians chapter 6 verses 12 through 18. We can overcome by the watchfulness, amen? the watchfulness we can overcome by submission to God. God does not want us to guess about our relationship with Him. The matter is too important to be left in the dark about it. Salvation is not hoping so or thinking so, but knowing so. And God wants us to be sure about our salvation from sin. John said, but these are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you might have life through His name in John chapter 20, verse 31. And so in his first epistle, John said, these things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may believe on the name of the Son of God. 1 John 5, 13. Paul entertained no doubt about his relationship with the Lord. He said, for the witch cause I also suffer these things. Nevertheless, I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he's able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. In 2 Timothy chapter 1, hallelujah, verse 12. And so I'm glad God wants to occupy the house of your soul. And he wants to help you cultivate the fruit of the spirit of Galatians chapter five, verses 22 and 23. He wants to help you to love him supremely and to love yourself properly and to love others in a helping and joyful way. When we permit God to fill our hearts and lives, he gives us a great inward security that replaces the fear and anxiety that dwelt there before. And when he is permitted to fill our hearts and lives, he enriches us so that we can become givers instead of getters. He enables us to experience a joy that overflows and brings joy to others. And God wants to help you be what he meant for you to be before the evil one came in and disturbed and destroyed the beauty and peace of Eden's garden. God wants to restore paradise in your heart. I mean your home. And he can do it. That only through Jesus Christ. Let Jesus come into your heart. because there is no substitute for Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen. Lord, help us to love others the way that you love them. And on earth, Jesus, you even loved those who hated, tormented, killed you, and you forgave them without hesitation. Help us as men and women of God to do that too. Help us to forgive even those who hurt, who hate, and those who use people. Help us to let go of the resentment and bitterness and above all take away any thought that may ever have the revenge of getting even or rejoicing at a downfall. Help us to truly forgive and love our enemies and only the power of that spirit that you give us through salvation will be able to do that. Thank God that your scripture said, Father forgive them for they know not what they do. And they divided his garment and they cast his lots. Father, thank you for giving us a clean home, a clean home. And Lord, I pray God that everything that we do, may we continue to have. There's nothing neutral about us because the danger zone of an empty soul that our heart is like a home, Father. It's like a home. And when it comes to Christ, our home is cleansed. We are experienced to fill our home, Lord. And what happens when we do not fill our home? Father, I pray how things can become worse than at first. But Lord, I'm glad that the last state of that man is worse than the first. But Lord, we fill the home of our heart. In principle, we sanctify the Lord God in our heart. We set ourselves apart, Father. In practice, we utilize every opportunity to study your word, to attend your church, to be in Bible study, to read our Bible daily, Lord. We sing Psalms and hymns. And Father, we experience that in all of this in Jesus' marvelous mighty name. you