Let's stand together for the reading of God's word. We'll be moving ahead in the book of Acts together. We're now into chapter 24. The title of today's sermon is The Elements and Parties of the Devil's Schemes. I'll be reading from verse 31 in chapter 23 through to verse 16 in chapter 24. Brothers and sisters, please listen carefully because this is God's holy and infallible word. Then the soldiers, as they were commanded, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris. The next day, they left the horsemen to go on with him and returned to the barracks. When they came to Caesarea and had delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him. And when the governor had read it, he asked what province he was from, and when he understood that he was from Cilicia, he said, I will hear you when your accusers also have come. And he commanded him to be kept in Herod's praetorium. Now, after five days, Ananias, the high priest, came down with the elders in a certain orator named Tertullus. These gave evidence to the governor against Paul. And when he was called upon, Tertullus began his accusation, saying, See that through you Seeing that through you we enjoy great peace and prosperity is being brought to this nation by your foresight, we accept it always and in all places, most noble Felix, with all thankfulness. Nevertheless, not to be tedious to you any further, I beg you to hear by your courtesy a few words from us. For we have found this man a plague, a creator of dissension among the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. He even tried to profane the temple. We seized him and wanted to judge him according to our law. But the commander Lysias came by and with great violence took him out of our hands, commanding his accusers to come to you. By examining him yourself, you may ascertain all these things of which we accuse him. And the Jews also assented, maintaining that these things were so. Then Paul, after the governor had nodded to him to speak, answered, And as much as I know that you have been for many years a judge of this nation, I do the more cheerfully answer for myself, because you may ascertain that it is no more than 12 days since I went up to Jerusalem to worship. And they neither found me in the temple disputing with anyone, nor inciting the crowd either in the synagogues or in the city, nor can they prove the things of which they now accuse me. But this I confess to you, that according to the way which they call a sect, so I worship the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets. I have hope in God, which they themselves also accept, that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust. This being so, I myself always strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men. Thus ends the reading of God's word. Amen, amen. Please be seated. John Calvin's commentary about this text says, and Luke declares this, therefore, that we may know that the Jews did omit nothing whereby they might oppress Paul and that they might not only prove him guilty, but so dash him out of countenance that he might not be able to defend himself. And so let us consider that it came to pass by the wonderful providence of God that Paul did so stoutly endure such sore assaults. Wherefore, if it so fall out at any time that a godly man, being alone, be beset with a great number of enemies, let him call to mind this history, and let him be of good courage. As David does likewise, exhort us by his own example. If tents were pitched about me, I will not fear. Because thou art with me. It's from Psalm 27 3. Indeed, in today's text, we see the tents of prowling wickedness pitched all around Paul on every side. You know, Jesus said that this would happen to his sheep in Matthew 10. Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues. You will be brought before governors and kings for my sake as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak. For it is not you who speak, the spirit of your father who speaks in you. The title of today's sermon is The Elements and Parties of the Devil's Schemes. All the focus will be upon the typical process that the devil uses to oppress and harm God's people. Certainly we do not want to set our gaze upon these threats, but upon Christ himself. So as we're reading through these things, recall, of course, that Jesus is the one who has foreordained these events that Paul is experiencing, and he is the one who has foreordained what we are experiencing. He's the one who saw Paul through all of these things and he is the one who will see us through a world that is filled with threats against the people of God. So first we'll see the rapid overwhelming display brought on by the Jews when they arrive and a powerful mercenary tongue that they hired. We'll see the use of flattery and false humility, which is so typical for the devil's schemes, and ad hominem language that is put to use that is also frequently a part of argumentation that lacks evidence. And then we'll see that with the false generalized accusations that are brought forward and a twisting of the narrative telling the story in a way that behooves their case, even shifting the burden of proof onto Felix himself at this point in time. Of course, they brought with them a great gathered group of false witnesses as well. If this doesn't sound familiar to you in terms of what's going on in our world today, then perhaps you're one of those wise people who doesn't read the news. And then, of course, we'll have some questions to know, love and obey God and brothers and sisters be encouraged. So this rapid, overwhelming display. Now after five days, Ananias, the high priest, came down with the elders and a certain orator named Tertullus. These gave evidence to the governor against Paul. So arriving quickly with a prestigious Jewish high priest, with a famous Roman lawyer, he's probably Roman, we don't know for sure, and the national leaders of the Jews, these Jews parade this overwhelming force before Felix, the governor. Surely, with such a display, Paul must be a true national menace to justify such trouble and such expense. Calvin says he brings with him a train and that of the worshipful company of elders that the governor might be moved with their very pomp to condemn Paul. But for as much as Paul did use no eloquence, they had no need to hire a rhetorician to contend with him in eloquence. Moreover, they did exceed him both in dignity and also in multitude, so that it was an easy matter for them to oppress a poor man and such a one as was destitute of man's help. I wonder if this is a part of what's going on in Paul's mind, this kind of situation where he said, let every man be a liar and let God be true. We see here also the perversion and the weaponization of God's good gift. The institutions of the church and the state are given by God as his ministers. His good gifts to this world to proclaim the gospel and to punish evildoers, to promote His righteousness and to fight against sin and crime in the earth in order that we might live quiet and peaceable lives. These beautiful twin stabilizing forces bring joy and prosperity to a people when filled with those who are devoted to Christ, filled with His Spirit, seeking His glory. Oh, but when it's filled with those who hate Christ and seeking their own glory and their own power and their own ambitions and even their own cruel, malicious desire to kill and destroy, these powers are twisted into the foulest two headed monster yet known to Earth before this time, at that time or since. bringing death and destruction veiled by smiles and promises of justice and peace and prosperity. The 20th century is littered with 140 million corpses as a result of this. They also bring with them a powerful mercenary tongue to further demonstrate their commitment to justice. And when he was called upon, Tertullus began his accusations. The Jews focus their attack via this smooth-tongued, high-powered lawyer whose power of speech would serve to sway the governor their way. Tertullus' business is, on behalf of the prosecutors, to open the information against him. And he is a man that will say anything for his fee. Mercenary tongues will do so, says Matthew Henry. No cause so unjust but can find advocates to plead it. And yet we hope many advocates are so just as not knowingly to patronize an unrighteous cause, but Tertullus was none of these. His speech, or at least an abstract of it, for it appears by Tully's orations that the Roman lawyers on such occasions used to make long harangues. as he reported, and it is made up of flattery and falsehood. It calls evil good and good evil dressed in the robes of righteousness and justice, spewing forth injustice and unrighteousness. Do we live in such an age, brothers and sisters? Do you see these things around you as well locally, on the state level, on the national level? I do. Stratulis goes on and he initiates his words by using flattery and false humility. Seeing that through you we enjoy great peace and prosperity as being brought to this nation by your foresight, we accept it always and in all places, most noble Felix with all thankfulness. Nevertheless, not to be tedious to you any further, I beg you to hear by your courtesy a few words from us. Through you, he says, Felix himself has granted such a wondrous commendation from all the Jews by this mouthpiece. Felix has provided, what has he provided? He's given them enjoyment of great peace and prosperity to the entire nation, he says, through his own wisdom and foresight. What a great governor. We accept it, he says. I beg you, he says, just a few words, he says. So Felix, he's the greatest bestower, and the Jews are nothing but these humble and grateful servants, glad to receive from his noble hand. And they just want to say a few things, if his patience will allow it. Flattery upon flattery, most noble Felix, who was actually a wicked leader, by your courtesy of which he had none, Flattery upon flattery, lies as they spoke them, they knew them to be lies, not to be tedious. This self-deprecation is so often on the tongues of those who believe themselves to be the highest in that room, in that group, believing themselves to be the ones most worthy of respect and while saying self-deprecating words. So Tertullus knows how to lay it on. And I would make a joke about how he's a lawyer, but I'll leave that alone. He is buttering up Felix's pride before bringing in the false accusations. And so this is a word to the wise. As soon as you're feeling comfortable and thankful for the glib words of commendation coming to you from someone who wants something from you or whom you don't know very well, you should be on guard. OK, this is a standard tactic of the devil. Use our pride against us. Because by now, if Felix isn't careful, he's like, well, at least somebody's finally noticing. Yeah, it's a hard job I've got, if you even knew the half of it. So buttering up a prideful person is a path to success. Tertullus uses a preface, nothing pertinent to the matter. These things were not fitting. because he commends Felix wisdom and virtues that he may purchase favor. Therefore it is a filthy and flattering exordium. But I miss like nothing but this, which is altogether corrupt. This is Calvin for the rhetorician does insinuate himself under false praises that he may darken the matter, which is called in question. To what end does he speak of peace in a well-ordered state, save only that Felix may think that the safety of Judea consists in condemning Paul, and that he may examine the matter no further. Moreover, it appears by Josephus, the Jewish historian, how covetously, cruelly, and voluptuously Felix behaved himself in that province toward those people. The unworthy and tragical murdering of the highest priest, Jonathas, because he set himself against his dissolute tyranny was already passed. And finally, almost at the very same time, Claudius Caesar was enforced with the complaints of the whole nation to put Festus in his place and to call him to answer for himself. And we'll see that as we go on, that Festus replaces Felix. He was most ignoble. He was discourteous. He was evil. He was a bad. As we said last time, he had come up out of being enslaved and had been brought up and through the ranks and become a leader. Had been married to a leader amongst the Romans and later would be, I think even at this time, married to a leader amongst the Jews. Many wives. Had a relative on the Senate in Rome. He was connected, he was cruel, he was all about himself, and he used his power to that end is what it looks like from the primary historical records, both Roman and Jewish. Most noble Felix. So it's a bit of a joke. I mean, anyone there would have like chuckled under their breath to hear him say that, because everyone knew who Felix was, really. Okay, so they buttered him up, now they insult Paul, okay? You know that your argument is weak if all you can say is something bad about the person, okay? You know, because who needs a platform if you can just hate the opponent, right? Is that going on in our world today? Ad hominem attacks? It is weak-minded individuals who are swayed by such language. For we have found this man a plague, a creator of dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. A plague. That's a pest, a contagious pestilence. Ringleader. That's a very derisive connotation here. Not someone who's just a noble leader, but someone who's stirring things up wrongly in the way that he's getting things done. You know, he's, in today's world, we'd call him, we would have said he's a community organizer. So this is what they're accusing him of being. Commentary says, we have found him, the plague of the nation, a walking pestilence, which supposes him to be a man of a turbulent spirit, malicious and ill-natured, and one that threw all things in a disorder wherever he came. They would have it thought that he had done a more mischief in his time than a plague could do, that the mischief he did was spreading and infectious and that he made others as mischievous as himself, that it was as of as fatal consequence as the plague is killing and destroying and laying all waste, that it was as much to be dreaded and guarded against as a plague is. Many a good sermon he had preached and many a good work he had done. And for these he is called a pestilent fellow. Of course, these who are doing this are the plague of the world at the time, and Jesus through the Romans, which should soon stamp them out. And God will have his say in today's world as well, brothers and sisters, in due time. We know where the pestilence sits, do we not? And the Lord Jesus Christ sees far better than we do, and he can sort rightly So they insult Paul after buttering up Felix. They've got the stage set. They've got their big parade of people there. The great orator, the high priest of the Jews. And don't forget, these Jews were putting a lot of money in Roman pockets, probably Felix's pockets. The Sadducees controlled the treasury and they controlled the Sanhedrin. So they were veiled threats here as well. So he moves on then to give generalized accusations that hopefully in this context will just be accepted. A creator of dissension, he's called. What does that mean? Tried to profane the temple. That's pretty general as well, right? See, no evidence has brought forth to justify these accusations, and Paul's going to reference that in his own defense. And even the accusations themselves are nonspecific. Brothers and sisters, beware vague claims. Vague claims indeed make hard a specific defense. In fact, make it impossible. And the Jews were the seditious ones. They were the seditious ones in every way. And again, we see that evil comes forth to do evil and part of its evil plan. is to cover its tracks by accusing those who would stand against it as doing the very evil that it is doing it while it's making those accusations. To put those who stand against evil on the defensive. Be very, very wary of those who make general accusations. It's so often employed just to shut things down. Well, you're just prideful. Well, OK. Aren't we all? What did I do? What did I say? Well, you're just prideful. That should not fly. And you should not listen to that person if they will not give you some specific examples of how you have sinned against them. Similar to what's happening here is the same approach that is often taken. in the world at large. And you see the inflammatory language as well, dissension, profane. It's this editorializing that takes place that does not respect Paul as a fellow human being deserving of due process. He's convicted by their language ahead of time. No good, true, honest lawyer on either side would ever use defamatory, editorializing speech ahead of time. They seek the truth. They lay out facts to the best of their ability. And in discovery, both sides are sharing all the information they can to prove that this person is innocent if it's present. That's not what was on the mind of these Jews at that time. Due process was not in their mind, as we will see. Matthew Henry says, the Jews were disaffected to the Roman government. Those of them that were most bigoted were the most so. And this Felix knew, and had therefore a watchful eye upon them. Now they would fain make him believe that this Paul was the man that made them so, whereas they themselves were the men that sowed the seeds of faction and sedition among them. And they knew it. And the reason why they hated Christ and his religion was because he did not go about to head them in opposition to the Romans. The Jews were everywhere, much said against Paul, and stirred up the people to clamor against him. They moved sedition in all places where he came, and then cast the blame unjustly upon him, as if he had been the mover of the sedition. As Nero not long after set Rome on fire, and then, he said, the Christians did it. Brothers and sisters, this should make bells ringing in your head when you think back over the last five years of what's been going on in our nation. Don't take the bait. When you see these things happening, don't take the bait. Because you know what's coming. So then they go to twist the narrative, right? We see the spin, it goes on all the time. We see, okay, and this is what the Jews, this is how the, so we know what really happened because Luke told us. But of course, Felix wasn't there and Felix doesn't really know what happened. And so the Jews are going to try to get their story out first and get that idea in Felix's mind. And as you know, once an idea is in someone's mind, it's more difficult to unseat it. You've got more work to do. So they put the lie in his mind, and here it is. And we seized him, because of course he's a menace, right? And we seized him and wanted to judge him according to our law. But the commander Lysias came by and with great violence took him out of our hands, commanding his accusers to come to you. So now Felix is being troubled just because of Lysias, and the Jews didn't want to be there troubling him. It's a lie. It's a pack of lies. Let's look at them. So first of all, they omitted some facts, okay? The Jews did not simply seize Paul. You remember what they did. They seized him, and they were beating him in the temple space, hoping to kill him. They had no plans for a trial. They had plans for a burial, but they did not have plans for a trial. They wanted him dead. But we were going to give him a trial according to our law. It's laughable, isn't it? But that's what they're standing there claiming. It shows you that these kind of people don't care one bit about the truth. They don't care about the truth. And neither would you were it not for Christ in your life. Because remember in Acts 22, and all the city was disturbed and the people ran together, seized Paul. So this is after they made the false accusation about him bringing a Gentile into the space that they shouldn't go into, which he did not do. And what'd they do? Well, they gently took him and they took him and set him up in time for a trial. No, no, actually here's what actually happened. And they dragged him out of the temple and immediately the doors were shut. Now, as they were seeking to kill him, News came to the commander of the garrison that all Jerusalem was in an uproar. So the whole trial and then kill him thing? No. It was killing. That's all it was. And so you see what happens, the schemes of the devil, the way the devil works. The devil does not want due process. The devil does not want justice. The devil just wants the destruction of those who would stand against him and his dark plans for this world. All the while claiming he's in favor of due process. Next, no mention is made of the fact that a Sanhedrin trial did take place. They left that out. as if Lysias prevented the Jews from having that trial. Like, well, we would have already taken care of this if it weren't for Lysias. Well, no, there was a trial. See, the truth is just the opposite of what they're implying. Lysias is the one who brought about the initial trial, not the Jews. They had that trial because of Lysias. Lysias was trying to get to the bottom of it. Lysias was trying to take care of it locally. Oh, but Lysias just didn't do his job. You know, he just sent him over here to you, making problems for you. It's the exact opposite. These people lie upon lie upon lie. And this is what really happened. The next day, because he wanted to know for certain why he was accused by the Jews, he released him from his bonds and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear and brought Paul down and set him before them. Remember, that was the trial where Paul said, I'm here about the resurrection of the dead. And then the Pharisees and Sadducees started fighting amongst one another. And then it says Elisha had to go and rescue Paul again from their midst because, quote, they were going to tear him to pieces. There was no ruling. There was no judgment given. They just tried to kill him again. So you can see why they want to live that out, because they're a bunch of they're a bunch of gangsters. That's all they are. And they really don't want Felix to realize that they're worse than he is. They also twisted some facts. Lysias came by and with great violence took him out of our hands. Isn't that funny? They're trying to kill Paul. And they're like, well, he's so violent. Well, yeah, he had to be violent because you were trying to kill him. kind of conveniently left that out. But yes, Lucius did have to use great force to rescue Paul. And, you know, he pulled him out of their midst and then it says they had to carry him up the stairs. These Jews are like animals, like sharks with blood in the water. But now they're just there and they're so polite and they're just here for justice. So the real villains, in addition, let's don't forget this nice tasty fact. I mean, you can leave this out and see how horrible they are. But let's just throw this as the cherry on top of their villainy. The real villains, of course, say nothing about their complicity to have Paul murdered by the band of Jewish assassins. The assassins came to the chief priests and the elders and said, hey, we're going to kill him. We're going to murder him. We've taken a vow. We're not going to eat. We're not going to drink until he's dead. Now, here's what you do. You tell Lysias you want to have another trial. And when he brings him down, boom, we'll get him. We'll kill him. These are sicarios. That's what they're called, sicario. They had knives. They would kill in public. You'd just be standing there. Boom, you got a hole in your body. Who did it? Who knows? What a false face of innocence that darkness can put forth, blaming their victims for their evil. There's peace on their tongues and there's war in their hearts. That's who these people are. Okay? Now, brothers and sisters, has human nature changed? What is our universal condition? We are fallen rebels and sinners who hate God and want him dead and want to rule our own lives. That's who we are. And we will lie, we will cheat, we will steal, we will kill, we will do anything we need to do to get what we want. That is who we are apart from Jesus Christ. You can dress them up, you can put wigs on their heads, you can put robes on their bodies, you can put badges on their chests, you can put them in positions of power, and if they are outside of Christ, that is how they are likely to behave. Now is there common grace and does God keep everyone, does God work in such a way that not everyone becomes that wicked? Yes. But we should not walk around with blinders on our eyes thinking that we don't live in the same kind of world today. Assassinations have taken place in our national history. Who do you think was behind those assassinations? What are those people doing and saying now today? Has much changed? How are we going to respond? More schemes of the devil is to shift the burden of proof. They say by examining him yourself, you may ascertain all these things of which we accuse him. What? No, no, no, no. You're supposed to prove through evidence whether it happened or not. what the facts are. So the Jews are the ones who are called to make the case. They hold the burden of proof. And here they push it off onto Felix. And if you think about it, they know that they probably have some control over him. And they know that he's a wicked man who will make his decisions not based upon righteousness, but upon his personal interests. And that they feel like they probably have the upper hand to get him to do what they want him to do. And this is an oft-used and subtle slight of the evil hand turning the tables on the innocent instead of submitting to innocent until proven guilty due process, where the burden of proof rests with the accuser, not the accused. And along with this will come a host of false witnesses, and the Jews also assented, maintaining that these things were so. So they lied. They brought a whole troop of liars with them, We've talked about this before, but think about what a debased people the Jews had become. Seems fairly easy. It was five days, right? They couldn't have looked for too long. They apparently didn't have to ask too many liars before they found a handful to come with them amongst the elders. So when the Lord's hand of favor is upon a people, you know, even the atheist will be more apt to tell the truth than to lie. But when the Lord removes his hand of favor, liars proliferate like locusts devouring and destroying peace and justice. There can be no sound and stable society. There can be no sound or stable society if liars are tolerated. There can be no sound or stable society if liars are tolerated. Now what is the punishment for people who perjure themselves in court according to biblical law? What is the punishment according to biblical law for those who perjure themselves? You know the answer. So if I accuse you of a crime and that means that you would have to pay a penalty, what would I be required to do if I'm found to be a liar? I'd have to pay that penalty myself. Right? Let's say I accuse you of a capital crime and and you are not guilty and I'm lying about it. And I'm found guilty of this perjury in court. You know what biblical law says. I have committed a capital crime if I falsely accuse you of a capital crime. And so when we step back and we look at God's structure for society, we have lost respect for the importance of truth. And we've forgotten the reality that lies are the seeds of cultural destruction. Lies are the seeds of cultural destruction, especially in a court of law, but even outside a court of law. There's laws against slander. These things need to be taken far more seriously than they are in our world today. Commentary, in closing, Matthew Henry says, Felix asked them, Is this your sense and is it all that you have to say? And they answered, Yes, it is. And so they made themselves guilty of all the falsehood that was in his speech. Do you hear that? All of those liars became guilty of every lie that was told by Tertullus just by agreeing to it. Those that have not the wit and parts to do mischief with that some others have that cannot make speeches and hold disputes against religion, yet make themselves guilty of the mischiefs others do by assenting to that which others do and saying, these things are so repeating and standing by what is said to pervert the right ways of the Lord. Many that have not learning enough to plead for bail yet have wickedness enough to vote for bail. And so I hope you'll see the schemes and parties of the devil here in today's text. We see the parties to this evil false religion, right, the apostate Jews. Do we have that today? Yes, we do. And we see the civil government is often taken in and put to use for these same acts of evil against good people, especially against Christians. And then we see the typical schemes that are put to use, this overwhelming display, you know, the smooth speech, the flattery, the false humility, the ad hominem, insulting language. that then sets the stage for these false, generalized accusations with no evidence behind them. And then there'll be a twisting of the narrative of what has really happened into a retelling of the story that fits the purposes of the false accusers, a shifting of the burden of proof onto the accused, where now they are the ones that have to provide for their innocence, and a multitude of false witnesses coming together. Now was Rome powerful back then? They were. And did anyone want to find themselves under the accusations like this in a Roman court? No. Do we live in a world today with a similar empire that would be a crushing thing to find yourself under its gaze like this? Do we live in a world today where false progressive so-called Christians are using the state against other Christians? Or at least justifying actions of the state against Christians who are living in ways that Jesus calls them to live? Yes, you should study about the face act trials if you don't believe this, and you'll see many people are justifying the weaponization of the Department of Justice against these are brothers and sisters in Christ. Well, I'm no apologist of the former president. I think we can all agree that we look at it with an honest eye that we see many of these same things taking place with weaponization of the federal government and state government in corrupted states against this man. What are we to do about this? Well, let me tell you some things let's don't do. Let's start with that. Okay. Don't join Hell's Angels and drive to Colorado with a pistol. Okay. Don't do that. All right, because you know that's happening right now. You heard about Aurora, Colorado being taken over by Venezuelan gangs. The governors admitted it. It's not just fake news. And now supposedly there are hundreds, maybe thousands of Hells Angels driving their arm to make a difference. I would advise you not to be a part of that. This is what we call zealots. OK, that's what we see right in the New Testament. The zealots were frequently taken down by the Roman Empire. Did they have a cause? Yes. Did the Hells Angels have a cause? Yes. Do I hope they win? Yes. Am I going to join them? No. Why not? Because there's a time and a place for us to fight, and you have to be wise about where and when to do that. And this urge to violence and retribution that is a part of who we are can lead us into very, very unwise choices. And this is not just in what you do, but in the way you speak. We I don't know about you, but I really sense this deeply inside of me, this urge for justice, this longing to see the justice of God upon the heads of these evildoers who have harmed so many millions and millions of people in our world. I agree with RFK Jr. that Fauci and his gang are a group of homicidal criminals. who deserve to be brought to justice. But brothers and sisters, it has to be true justice, not vigilantism. OK, that's number one. Don't be a zealot. Do not give way to vigilantism. OK. Number two, here's what you don't do. You don't give away your guns. OK, so on the other side of this, you don't give away your guns. All right. We have to be prepared to defend ourselves against this kind of evil that we see going on. And as I mentioned already, the 130 to 140 million corpses. in Russia and Communist China and other places throughout the world prove to you that I am not speaking in hyperbolic terms to you right now about the world in which we currently live. This is not me trying to scare you. This is me giving you my assessment, which I think is accurate, of where we are in the world in our nation right now compared to other countries and what they've been through. The same tactics, the same censorship, the same weaponization of government, and the same attempts to disarm the public. So on the one hand, do not become violent, do not give away to vigilantism, but number two, don't give away your guns. In other words, be prepared, be wise to defend yourself if necessary and to join in with others. You know, in the founding of our nation, they would come together and they would practice these things because they saw what was happening with the threats from England. And they weren't considered extremists. They were considered realists about the world in which they live. So Second Amendment is very important, but don't initiate violence. Okay, but do understand that sometimes the only language that gets the message across and brings the needed outcome is violence. And I hate to say that. OK, but that's the reality of the world in which we live in some cases. All right. So don't be give way to vigilantism, but be prepared to defend yourself. All right. What next? Don't lose hope. Don't give way to discouragement. Don't become a cynic. Don't believe that there's never any hope for the corruption to be exposed and punished. Don't give way. Don't give way to the hopelessness. The demoralization is very real when criminals walk around unpunished, whether it's in DC, in the halls of DC, or whether it's so-called needful migrants who are raping and killing people and then getting out of jail. This is demoralizing to the human soul. It makes us despair that we'll ever live in a culture of beauty, that it will ever happen. So don't despair, okay? But instead, look to Jesus Christ. Look to Jesus Christ. Because. Who is the one who created the devil? God made him. Who holds the leash around Lucifer's neck? God does. Who held the leash around Ananias neck? Jesus Christ. Who held the leash around Felix and Lisey's neck? Jesus Christ. And did He die for your sins? Does He love you with an everlasting love? You and your family and your children and your grandchildren? And will He always be Lord Sabaoth, the one who fights for His people? And as we sang today in Psalm 110, is the father not as we speak placing all of his enemies under his feet? Is the NSA on the leash of the Lord Jesus Christ? Is the DOJ on the leash of the Lord Jesus Christ? Is the corruption in politics on the leash of the Lord Jesus Christ? All the pulpits filled with apostasy, preaching filthy nonsense, are they on the leash of the Lord Jesus Christ? Yes, they are. So we trust in God. We trust in God. So the answer here is to respond as a wise and courageous Christian filled with faith. Why is the word of God courageous to continue to do what you're called to do? And faith necessary to see beyond what's happening, regardless of what the next election holds. Regardless of whether you're censored on Facebook for the next piece of truth you put out there. Regardless of whether you don't get the job you want or lose all your earthly goods or your kids don't grow up and do what you want them to do. Imagine your worst disappointment. Because we just need to get rid of expectations and just embrace duty. We have one expectation and that is God is good and He is faithful to His promises. And we can rest in Him. We don't know what this world holds. We don't know what the future holds in this world. I'll just end with the call, the same words we heard from Christian Instruction Hour this morning. Ultimately what it comes to is to be content with your contentment. Because God will grant that the greatest joy that you have in this world is Him. That He will be your very great reward. And when He is your great reward, He is always more than enough. And this is the shield around your soul that protects you from the violent urges to take vengeance into your own hands. This is the shield around your soul that protects you from retreating into yourself and into a world of defeat and despair. But instead, we can be Christian people who live the way that He calls us to live with courage and with wisdom, leaving the results in His hands and being content and filled with gladness as we do so. Let us pray. Almighty and gracious Heavenly Father, Lord, we thank You for Your Word. We thank You, Lord, for demonstrating to us the schemes of the devil, typical ways that the devil uses these lies, the ways that false religion and misled political rulers can work together to harm your people. But most of all, Lord, we thank you that all things are from you and through you and to you and that we need fear nothing. Oh, grant us, Lord God, to receive from you not the spirit of fear, but the spirit of love and of power and of a sound mind. In Jesus' name, amen. My brothers and sisters, let us stand with glad hearts, rejoicing in the preaching of God's word.